


Digimon: Glitch

by Shiisiln



Series: Digimon: Succession [1]
Category: Digimon - All Media Types
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Angst, Body Horror, Children Swearing, Comedy, Genderfluid Character, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Multi, Past Child Abuse, Trans Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-15
Updated: 2017-08-07
Packaged: 2018-09-24 18:50:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 114,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9780422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shiisiln/pseuds/Shiisiln
Summary: The screen flashed back to white, and words appeared, large and clear.“Excuse my language, but what the hell,” Megan said flatly, grabbing onto Andrew's shoulders in shock.“Thaaaaat's creepy,” Andrew agreed, reaching up to grab her wrists.-Destiny has chosen you for greatness; a world is in danger. Will you answer the call?-“Ok, this has gotta be one of those prank programs,” Andrew said. “That, you know, gets into your info and does weird things? I must have downloaded something fishy yesterday.”That theory held up about until the screen started glowing.~Five Children are drawn into the Digital World to protect it against a great evil- whether they want to or not.ORI made a digimon AU for my original characters and got way, WAY too into it.





	1. Episode 1- A New World

**Author's Note:**

> So, the original version of this was posted chapter-by-chapter at a VERY rough draft stage on my tumblr. Now, finally, I'm cleaning it up and posting it here for the world to see!
> 
> A huge, HUGE thanks to Kintatsujo for encouraging me through the writing process, and for kinda inspiring this by saying my characters looked like a sentai team. X3 check her out here and on tumblr under the same name~
> 
> Warnings for this chapter- Mentions of child abuse and bullying, little kid angst, and... a pants-wetting scene. ._. I am extremely mature.

Megan was bored.

Really bored.

Really, incredibly, _despicably_ bored.

How boring her life was in this moment. How she longed for something interesting to happen; literally anything, at this point.

Maybe, if she was extremely lucky, someone would help alleviate her boredom. Maybe someone like, oh, I dunno, a sibling of similar age to herself-

“Ok, ok!” Andrew snapped, spinning sharply towards her in his computer chair. “You're bored, I get it!”

“Oh I'm sorry, was I saying that out loud?” Megan asked her brother innocently, kicking her legs back and forth from her perch on his bed.

“Yes. Very out loud,” Andrew grumbled. “I'm busy right now, why can't you go play by yourself?”

“I have been! I've been playing by myself all morning!” She gestured emphatically at the open window, through which sunlight and fresh spring air was streaming. “Do I even want to know how many hours you've spent on the computer today?”

“Probably not,” Andrew said, spinning back around to face the screen. “I'm trying to teach myself how to draw with a tablet.”

“And how's that going?”

From the glare he shot her, not well.

She got up and walked around so she could lean on the back of his chair, looking over his shoulder. “Oh, wow. Are those robots making out?”

“Get off!” he shoved her away. “Seriously, why are you being so clingy today? I just want to be alone.”

“That's all you've wanted for weeks!” Megan flopped back onto the floor in frustration. “We haven't hung out in forever... I miss you.”

She must have injected the correct amount of pathos into her voice, because when Andrew looked down at her this time, he looked guilty as well as annoyed.

He sighed heavily, rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Ok. If you just give me five more minutes to finish this, I'll do whatever you want.”

Megan shot back up, clapping. “Yes! I knew I could wear you down eventually.”

He groaned. “Do you have any idea how annoying you are?”

“I'm sure you'll let me know,” Megan said cheerfully, slapping him on the back as she walked out.

But before she skipped out of the room, she paused, her hand on the doorway. Andrew was back to scowling at the computer screen, his shoulders hunched and his legs folded under him.

She covered it with bad jokes and whining, but honestly, she was worried for him. This past year- well. losing Grandpa hadn't been easy for either of them, but it had hit Andrew particularly hard. And he had a bad habit of always covering up what he was feeling.

“Hey.” she hung off the doorframe and watched her brother closely. “You Ok?”

“What?” He looked up, confused. “I'm fine, why?”

“Just...” She let go of the doorframe and rubbed at the back of her neck. “It's nothing, I just- I worry about you, when you get like this.”

He blinked at her, then looked away, pursing his lips. “You don't have to worry about me.”

She glared at him. “Of course I do, dummy! As your twin sister, that's my job- annoy you and worry about you.”

He huffed a little laugh, but didn't take his eyes off the computer screen. “I'm just… everything is confusing right now.  I don't want to be a burden to you.

She frowned, and walked forward, leaning down to look him directly in the eyes. "Andrew- you could never be a burden to me. Do you understand? If there's anything- _anything_ \- I can do to help you, you tell me."

He looked away. "I guess..."

"Twin code, remember?" she said, putting her hands on her hips.

The corner of his mouth twisted up. “Right- Twin Code.” he said, and bumped her back with his shoulder. Then, suddenly, he stiffened. “Oh no.”

“Hm?” She looked up to see that the computer screen had gone white. “Did you break it?”

“I didn't do anything!” He leaned forward and hit a few keys. “Damn it, no! I was almost done!”

Welp, there goes the good mood, Megan thought, edging back and preparing to launch herself out of the room at the first sign of a meltdown from her brother.

But before she could escape, the screen began to flash rapidly from white to black. Then a roll of nonsense characters began scrolling down it, letters and numbers jumbled together into gibberish.

Her eyes widened. “Christ. Have you ever seen it do this before?”

“No.” Andrew looked dumbfounded. “Um… do you think this is a virus, or-?

“-or is it freaking possessed?” Megan let out a nervous giggle. “I guess we'll have to wait until Mom and Dad get home, I have no cl-”

The screen flashed back to white, and words appeared, large and clear.

_-Hello, Children.-_

“Excuse my language, but what the hell,” Megan said flatly, grabbing onto Andrew's shoulders in shock.

“Thaaaaat's creepy,” Andrew agreed, reaching up to grab her wrists.

_-Destiny has chosen you for greatness; a world is in danger. Will you answer the call?-_

“Ok, this has gotta be one of those prank programs,” Andrew said. “That, you know, gets into your info and does weird things? I must have downloaded something fishy yesterday.”

That theory held up about until the screen started glowing.

Andrew made a noise like a trampled puppy and leapt out of the chair. Megan shrieked, but more in surprise than terror, even as two glowing orbs slowly emerged from the shining screen and floated towards them.

She was vaguely aware of her twin pulling on her shirt as she watched them in fascination. They were identical egg-sized globs of molten light, glittering slightly as she turned her head from side to side.

She got the oddest feeling that she should grab one of them. She reached up, mesmerized.

“What are you doing?! Get away from those thing!” Andrew yelled, grabbing her arm and trying to hold her back.

She brushed him off absently. “But they're so beautiful,” she said.

“What if it kills you?” Andrew's voice was frantic.

She scowled at him. “You always have to jump for the worst-case scenario, don't you?”

Megan was a lot of things; curious was one of them. Decisive was another. Contrary was absolutely one.

Cautious wasn't.

She reached up with the arm he wasn't holding and nabbed one of the orbs out of the air. It didn't burn her fingers, or explode, or anything, it just felt pleasantly warm and heavy in her palm. She turned to her twin with a teasing grin, ready to tell him he was too much of a worrywart.

His horrified expression was the last thing she saw before she was pulled swiftly into the dark.

There was a momentary, nauseating sense of moving very quickly through an undefined space. Then she found herself falling to her knees on a rough, stony path.

She blinked, then slowly looked up to see that she was surrounded by trees; in the distance, there were mountains.

Her house was nowhere in sight.

She sat down. She kept her breathing even. She did not panic.

She did not panic.

“I think,” she said to herself, slowly and deliberately. “I think I've made a terrible mistake.”

~

Andrew stared at the blank space that his sister had previously occupied. Foolishly, he stuck his arm out and waved it around like she might have just gone invisible. “M-Megan?”

Where had that thing taken her? What should he do? Their parents were out, should he call them? Or should he just directly call the police station?

He shot a nervous look at the second glowing orb. It was still hanging in the air, spinning gently.

He got the feeling that, if he reached up and grabbed it, it would take him to wherever Megan had gone. It was a ridiculous idea, but-

-But he couldn't possibly leave Megan on her own, not when she might be in serious danger.

He took a deep breath. "Twin code," he muttered to himself.

Then, scowling in determination, he snatched the second glowy blob out of the air.

He was immediately yanked up out of his chair at a great speed, but before he could even yell, he was spat out onto the hard, rocky ground.

He lay there for a moment, in pain and waiting for the world to stop spinning around him. “Owww...”

Eventually his head cleared, and he levered himself up, wincing and picking bits of gravel off his arms. He looked around, frowning; judging by all the trees around, he was in a forest.

It almost looked like the forests that surrounded his town, but unless the tectonic plates had decided to do some serious remodeling while he slept, there weren't mountains in Iowa.

He got to his feet, and as he dusted himself off, he realized that his hand was clenched around something. He opened his hand to see a small, rounded mechanical device with a few buttons and a screen. it looked like one of those virtual pet keychains you could buy.

He frowned down at it. He shook it up next to his ear, then pressed all the buttons, but nothing happened as far as he could see.

“Well, this is freaking useful,” he grumbled, and stuffed it into his pocket. Then he cupped his hands around his mouth, and started shouting; “Megan! Megan, where are you?!”

No answer. His stomach turned with anxiety. _Oh my god, what if something happened to her?! I need to find her now!_

“MEGAN!” He hollered as loud as he could, trying to hold back the frightened tears that wanted to spill from his eyes.

This time, after a few seconds, he heard a distant reply. “Andrew? Andrew, is that you?”

His heart leapt in relief. “MEGAN!” he yelled. “HOLD ON, I'M COMING!”

He took off, running down the stony path, yelling back and forth with Megan until he turned a corner and saw her sprinting towards him. He held out his arms and she crashed into him, the two of them hugging fiercely.

“Oh my god, I thought I'd lost you,” Andrew whispered, a few tears escaping to roll down his cheeks.

“I'm OK. Are you alright?” she asked, pulling back and looking him over.

“Oh, I'm fine,” Andrew said, his voice turning hard. “I'm not the one who grabbed onto a radioactive tamogatchi for funsies.”

Megan rolled her eyes. “Oh come on, it's not like it killed me. Well. Unless it did and this is the heaven.”

“Well I don't see Freddie Mercury anywhere, so that's ruled out.” Andrew looked around nervously at the imposing mountains around them. “I would like to know where we are, though. It kinda looks like the Rockies or something.”

“Well wherever it is, we're not alone up here.” Megan rubbed the back of her neck. “I saw something weird a minute ago.”

“What, like another person?” Andrew instinctively drew closer to his sister. Was theperson who had sent them that creepy message out here somewhere?

“No, some kind of... creature. It was big, and moving fast.” She shuddered slightly. “And see, you said Rockies and that made me think bears-

“It was probably a moose,” Andrew said, trying to reassure her and himself at the same time.

“That would be worse!” Megan threw her arms up for emphasis. “Ungulates are beings of the devil!”

He reached out and took her hand. “It doesn't matter now; let's just try and find some hint of civilization, ok?”

She nodded tightly.

They walked together for some time, holding hands and keeping quiet. Andrew tried to keep a lid on his growing anxiety, but it was hard when they were lost out in the middle of nowhere with no way to contact anyone that might be able to help them.

He was a bout to realize, however, that being lost was the least of their problems.

Sudden movement in the foliage to their left made them both jump and freeze. Megan grabbed onto Andrew's arm. “What was that?” she hissed.

“I- I dunno.” Andrew whispered back. “Think it might be that thing you saw?”

“I hope not. That-” but before she could finish her sentence, something bolted out of the trees with a ferocious snarl.

It looked like a boar, but it was way, way too big. Andrew briefly remembered standing next to a taxidermy boar at the natural history museum, and it had been less than half the size of this monstrosity.

It also hadn't been on fire.

The creature roared at them, and Andrew would swear to god that his heart actually stopped for a moment. He felt a trickle of warm liquid across his ankles, and somewhere in the back of his mind, he dimly realized he'd just peed himself.

Megan, as usual, had better reflexes than he did. “RUN!” she yelled in his ear, and pulled on his arm until the rest of his body got the hint and stumbled it's way after her.

They could hear the monster thundering along behind them as they ran. Megan steered him off the side of the road, which Andrew dimly realized was a good idea; they had a better chance of losing it in the woods than outrunning it on the straightaway.

Well, it seemed like a good idea, until they came upon a sudden, steep incline. He jammed his feet into the ground, trying to stop, but Megan plowed into his back and sent them both tumbling down into a ditch.

They landed in a tangled heap at the bottom. Andrew groaned and levied himself off Megan, who wheezed loudly. He shook his head and looked back up to the road, a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach when he saw the boar.

It stared at them for a long moment, scraping it's hooves in the dirt and snorting steam. Then, slowly but surely, it started to climb down the bank.

“Megan.” Andrew clung to his twin, scared for his life. “Megan, what do we do?!”

“I don't know!” Megan hissed back.

A wave of heat rolled over them as the boar got close; it had to go slow down the slope, but it didn't look any calmer than it had when it was chasing them.

They clung to each other, trembling and terrified. We're going to die here, Andrew thought as the tears he'd been restraining began to roll down his cheeks. We're actually going to die!

But before it could come any closer, something strange happened.

Andrew felt his pocket grow strangely warm. He fumbled a hand down into his pocket, and pulled out the keychain gadget from before. It was glowing again, and almost hot in his bare palm. He shot a sideways look at Megan, who was holding her keychain and frowning down at it.

Before they could say anything to each other, light exploded from their hands. Andrew had to turn his head and close his eyes to keep from getting them burnt out. There was a high-pitched squeal of fear from the boar, and then the sound of flesh hitting flesh.

“We won't let you hurt our partners!” A high-pitched voice trilled. “ _Petite Twister!_ ”

“ _Pepper Breath!_ ” a second voice yelled.

By the time he opened his eyes again, the boar was scrambling back up the ditch, squealing in distress and shaking it's tail as it ran.

Andrew let out a breath and slumped back, putting his hand over his heart. “I don't even know what just happened, but I don't think we're going to die, and that's good enough for me,” he mumbled.

“Um, hello.”

He almost jumped out of his skin as something small and soft touched his knee. "What the-?!"

He stared down in shock at the two small creatures standing in front of them. The larger one looked like a miniature orange tyrannosaurus. It had two long, sharp claws on each hand, a broad, powerfully muscled chest, and shockingly blue eyes.

The other one looked like a rabbit that had learned to walk on it's hind legs. It's fur was brown and pink and it had long, floppy ear and a cute, round face. It also had three intimidating horns on the crown of it's head.

“Hi there!” The mini-T-rex waved at them.

Andrew scrambled back, throwing an arm across Megan's chest. “Gah! Stay back!” he yelped.

Megan absently pushed Andrew's arm away and crawled forward, already forgetting her fear. “What are you?” 

“We're Digimon!” The mini t-rex said cheerfully.

Andrew grabbed the back of Megan's shirt. “Don't touch them! What if they're dangerous?!”

“Excuse me?” The stand-up rabbit frowned at him. “We just saved you! Shouldn't you be thanking us or something?”

“Well- I mean- yes, thanks, but this is ridiculous!” Andrew threw his hands up. “Are you saying you just trust these Pokemon, or whatever they are?!”

“Aww, loosen up Andrew!” Megan tugged gently out of his grip and scooted forwards on her knees to look the T-rex right in it's eyes. “They're so cute, how could they possibly want to hurt us?”

Andrew tried to find some way to convince her to stay away from them, but the rabbit interrupted him. “Why don't we start with introductions?” it said dryly. “I'm Lopmon.”

“And I'm Agumon!” The T-rex said, raising it's hand. “And we're your digimon partners!”

“Whoa, whoa, what?!” Andrew was starting to get frantic. “'Partners'? I didn't sign up for this! I don't even know where we are, or get back home, or what that thing was that almost killed us-!”

“Andrew, calm down.” Megan put her hands on his shoulders. “Breathe.”

He sucked in a breath, then released it shakily, trying not to burst into tears again. Now that they weren't in immediate danger, he wanted nothing more than to curl up in a ball and cry for his mom. He just barely had enough dignity to not do that.

“My name is Megan,” his sister said to the 'digimon'. “This Is my brother, his name's Andrew. We were taken here unexpectedly when we found these,” she held out her hand, showing them the little device. “Do you know where we are?”

“You're in the digital world now,” The rabbit- Lopmon- said.

“And what's that, exactly?” Megan asked.

“Umm... it's hard to explain,” Agumon said. “We're supposed to take you to the temple on this mountain.”

“Things will be explained to you when we get there,” Lopmon said.

“Will we be able to go home then?” Megan asked.

The two 'Digimon' _(What a strange word,_ Andrew thought,) looked at each other. “...We don't know,” Lopmon said after a minute. “Maybe.”

“Well, it seems like our best chance for getting out of here in one piece,” Megan said evenly. “How about it, Andrew? Are you up for a bit of a hike?”

Andrew looked at her, biting his lip. He didn't want to trust these things; he didn't want anything to do with them.

But, well… it wasn't like they had a lot of choice, did they?

He took a deep, shaking breath, and pushed himself to his feet. He was sweaty, dirty, covered in cuts and bruises from his fall, and trembling like a leaf; but he was still in one piece. He could hold out for a little while longer.

He swallowed hard. “I'm up for it. But first, do you guys know where I can get a change of pants around here?”

~

Eleena was curled up on the bed, her ipod on full blast. She pressed her headphones into her skull so hard that she could feel the beat of the music thrumming through her entire body, verging on painful. She bit her lip and tried to hold back tears.

Her stepfather had just gone downstairs after spending a full five minutes screaming at her about nothing in particular.

Just a regular night, then; he came home from work, came up into her room without even knocking, yelled at her for a while, then went downstairs to drink himself stupid before her mom came home.

There weren’t words for how angry she was. She hated her stepfather; loathed him with a depth and breadth that felt like it should have blotted out every other emotion she was capable of having, but somehow there was still room for hurt and sadness and other nasty, pathetic feelings underneath.

She wasn’t very fond of her mother anymore, either. She knew her stepfather was mean to her, too, but no matter what he did, she never reacted. Eleena had tried to tell her over and over again that she hated him and wanted him out of the house, but her mother just told her not to talk about him that way, that she should be grateful to have two working parents who paid for food and shelter and clothing; something her mother hadn’t had growing up.

He doesn’t even make that much money, Eleena thought bitterly. He works half as hard as she does, and he still insists that she cook and clean and do everything else by herself.

But as much as she hated her stepfather, and as little as she even thought of her mother as Her Mother anymore… there was no one in the world she hated as much as herself.

 _if you really loved your mother, you’’d find some way to make money so she didn’t have to be married to such a jerk,_ she thought to herself in the middle of the night when all her carefully-built walls came crumbling down. _If you really hated him, you’d just leave and learn to survive on your own._

_But you won’t do that, will you? You’re too much of a coward. All you ever do is hide and cry and pretend you don’t know he’s hurting her. Why do you even bother? What do you even contribute to the world? You should just disappear… disappear… disappear…_

The sound in her ears shorted out, and she was assaulted by a harsh burst of static. She yelped and sat bolt upright, tense and trembling.

Before she could snatch the headphones off her ears, a strange, distorted voice began whispering at her through them. The sound of it sent all the hairs on the back of her neck standing up.

**_“Poor child. So alone, so afraid… so weak.”_ **

Anger flashed through her. “I-I’m not weak!” Her voice cracked. Who the hell did she even think she was talking to?!

**_“But you want to become stronger, don’t you? You want the strength to stand up to your stepfather, the courage to tell your mother what he’s done to you.”_ **

She started to tremble. Whatever this voice was- and it might well just be evidence that she’d snapped under the strain- what it was saying was true. “I guess so…”

 ** _“What if I said I could give you power?”_** The voice hissed. **_“The power to take what you want, to do what you like- to punish those that had wronged you.”_**

Eleena remembered sometime last month, when her stepfather had grabbed her by the shoulders and thrown her backwards into a wall. He hadn’t even needed to put his whole strength into it, and she’s been helpless to stop him.

She imagined what it would feel like if she could toss him around like a ragdoll. If she could hurt him just as much- no, more- than he’d ever hurt her…

She thought about the boys that tormented her at school. She imagined herself with the power to pull them apart, tear them to pieces with her bare hands, to make their days living hell…

She swallowed hard. “What do I need to do?” she asked, her hands shaking but her voice steady.

All at once, her ipod began to glow. She dropped it with a squeak, and a small, spherical light emerged from the screen and rose up in front of her.

 ** _“Power is within your reach, child,”_** the voice whispered in her ear, even though the earbuds had fallen off her head. **_“All you have to do is take it.”_**

Mesmerized, she reached out towards the glowing orb, then hesitated. What would this do to her? What was the price of the power the strange voice promised?

Doe it even matter? she thought. This life you have isn’t even worth living. If there’s a chance you can change it, it’s worth taking, no matter what it costs.

Her fist closed around the orb. She felt like she’d grabbed onto a hot coal, pain searing up through her arm and into her chest.

She screamed, and was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The top picture is a commission by the imminently talented Kintatsjo. Go buy her aaaart, she roooocks.
> 
> Like what you see? Leave me a kudo and or a comment down below, or hit me up on Shiisiln.Tumblr.com!
> 
> A couple worldbuilding notes; I'm not following any canon continuity with this fic, so the events of Adventure, Tamers, or any other season aren't things that have happened, and none of those characters will be showing up.
> 
> (I don't promise to not make really unsubtle references to them, however. XP)
> 
> Also, the Digital World as it exists here is kind of cobbled together from the bits I liked from various series, along with a lot of stuff I just made up.


	2. Episode 2- Making Friends

Andrew was knee deep in a flowing stream, washing his jeans as thoroughly as he could manage. It was cold, but also kind of refreshing- and the water didn't smell like rotten fish, which was nice. _They must not have the same pollution problems_ _here_ _as we_ _do_ _on Earth_ , he thought.

  


Megan was sitting on the bank about ten feet away, talking animatedly with the two digimon. He had considered making them all stay back on the path while he washed up, but in the end he was more worried about leaving his sister alone with two strange- and possibly dangerous- creatures than his own modesty.

  


He was glad they had protected him and his sister, but he’d been through so much crap today, he wasn’t going to trust them that easily.

  


As he bathed, he listened absently to their talk.

  


“So that thing we ran from earlier- was that a digimon?” Megan was asking.

  


“Yep!” Agumon said. “That was Boarmon.”

  


“It seemed pretty aggressive.” Megan said.

  


“It was just protecting it’s territory,” Lopmon explained. “They're mostly herbivorous.”

 

Andrew looked up, frowning in disbelief.  “ Oh yeah? So what would it have done if it caught us?” 

  


“Probably gored you,” Lopmon said impassively. “And then fried you to charcoal.”

  


Andrew shuddered. “Well, I suppose we do owe you one,” he grumbled.

  


Megan hurried to change the subject. “So there are lots of- er, Digimon?- in this place, then?” 

  


“Yes!” Agumon said. 

  


“What are most of them like?” Megan leaned forward, resting her chin on her knees. “Can they all talk like you?”

  


“Every digimon has some way of communicating,” said Lopmon. “Some of us just aren’t very talkative.”

  


Megan laughed. “Just like humans, then. So, where are you from? Why did you come out of these little doodads Andrew and I have?”

  


“We’ve been sleeping for a long time,” Agumon said. “The spirit from the temple put us inside the digivices, and told us we’d wake up when our partners came!”

  


“Digivice, huh?” Megan looked down at the two objects- she was holding onto Andrew’s for him while he bathed. “You mentioned the whole ‘partner’ thing before, didn’t you? What exactly does that mean?”

  


“It means-” Lopmon began, but Agumon interrupted him.

  


“It means we’re bonded for life!” he crowed. “‘A sacred bond between human and digimon,’ that’s what Vega calls it!”

 

Andrew stiffened and turned.  “ Wait- bonded for  _ life _ ?!”  He pulled his jeans out of the water and started wading back to the shore . “We never agreed to anything like that!”

  


“ Who’s Vega?” Megan asked. 

 

Andrew scowled at her  as he wrung out his pants. “ Aren't you even slightly concerned about being soul-bonded to these weird cartoon characters for the rest of our lives?”

 

“No,” she said bluntly. “Who's Vega?”

 

“The spirit that lives in the temple,” Lopmon said, ignoring Andrew's comment.

  


Andrew sighed loudly. “Well then, let’s go to this temple, alright? So we can ask ‘Vega’ how he can make us _not_ be partners for life, and fricking send us home!”

  


“Andrew!” Megan hissed. “You’ll hurt their feelings!”

  


Andrew rolled his eyes. His sister was serious about all the wrong things.

  


~

  


Cameron had been walking for several hours now. His legs were getting tired, but he felt awkward asking for a break when Gabumon was still walking beside him without any sign of fatigue.

  


He glanced down at the weird, furry lizard creature out of the corner of his eye. He’d only met Gabumon that morning, when a strange device had come out of his computer at school and whisked him away to this strange world.

 

Gabumon had helped him up and very calmly and politely explained who he was and where they were. He called the little gadget a 'Digivice' and told Cameron that he'd been sleeping in it for many years, waiting for his one chosen partner to awaken him.

 

There was something surreal yet comforting about the whole experience that had kept Cameron from freaking out too badly. It was hard to be terrified when what looked like a weird cartoon character was rubbing your back and mournfully saying that he wished he could offer you tea.

  


They hadn't spoken much since then; Cameron couldn't decide which of the dozens of questions floating around in his head he wanted to ask first, and Gabumon seemed perfectly happy to walk in silence.

  


_This is the weirdest day of my life,_ Cameron thought. _..._ _at least I get to skip school._

  


He finally made his mind up to say something. “So, er... Gabumon. What-?”

  


“Shh!” Gabumon suddenly threw his arm out to keep Cameron from walking any further. “There's someone coming up the path.”

  


Cameron tensed. “Is it- something dangerous?” he asked nervously. Gabumon had warned him that there could be wild digimon out here, and Cameron wasn't eager to get into a fight.

  


“I'm not sure.” Gabumon urged him to step off the path a little, then cupped a clawed hand to his ear, listening hard.

  


Cameron listened too, and eventually he could hear the sound of approaching footsteps and multiple voices talking.

  


“...All I'm saying is, it's really weird to see a rabbit with horns,” a mid-range voice said; it sounded like a kid, maybe someone around Cameron's age.

  


“And I keep _saying_ that I'm _not_ a rabbit!” a much higher-pitched voice argued back. “I don't even know what that _is!_ ”

  


“ Well, I can already see you two are going to get on  _ swimmingly _ ,” a less high-pitched voice said. It sounded like a young girl. “Good luck with the whole bonded-for-life thing.”

  


“I still haven't agreed to that,” the first voice said again, sounding disgruntled.

  


Next to him, Gabumon's ears perked up, and his eyes got big and shiny. “Hey, I recognize those voices! Come on!” 

 

He grabbed Cameron's hand and, with a surprising amount of strength, pulled him back onto the path.

  


Coming down the road were two humans- a tanned girl with long red hair pulled back into a braid, and a pale, chubby boy with curly brown hair who was, for some reason, walking along in a t-shirt and his underwear, with wet jeans thrown over his shoulder.

 

Next to them were two Digimon- a small T-rex, and some kind of rabbit or dog that was walking on it's hind legs. 

  


The T-rex was the first one to catch sight of them. It's eyes lit up and it started waving frantically. “Gabumon! Is that really you?” it yelled, looking delighted.

  


“Agumon!” Gabumon called back, rushing forward to hug the other digimon. “Lopmon! Long time no see.”

  


While the digimon greeted each other, both the humans stared at Cameron. The girl looked curious; the boy, meanwhile, turned beet red and quickly unfolded the jeans and held them in front of himself.

  


Cameron blushed, too. “Um- hey! Er- you guys new here, too?”

  


“Apparently,” the girl said, bemused. “I'm Megan, and this is my brother, Andrew. Don't mind him; he's in a bit of an exhibitionist mood today.”

  


“ _ I was waiting for them to dry _ ,” Andrew hissed,  looking  mortified.

  


Cameron rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Ehehe... I'm Cameron. Good to meet you guys. This is, er, Gabumon! He's my- well, my partner, I guess.”

  


“It's nice to meet you,” Gabumon said shyly.

  


“The pleasure is ours, Gabumon,” Megan said, and actually knelt down to shake hands with him. Gabumon looked surprised but pleased by the gesture. “You know these guys, then?”

  


“All the chosen children's digimon know each other,” Agumon said,

  


“'All' of you?” Cameron asked. “Wait- does that mean there are _more_ kids who've been sucked into this world?”

  


The digimon all looked at each other for a moment.

  


“...Maybe?” Gabumon said, frowning.

  


“We were asleep for a long time,” Lopmon said, looking rather disturbed. “I... think we may have forgotten some things.”

  


“Ok, this is a great conversation and all,” Andrew said, “But can you all _please_ turn around so I can put my pants back on?!”

  


“ You didn't make us turn around when you took em  _ off _ ,” Agumon  pointed out .

  


“ _ Just do it!”  _ Andrew snapped.

  


Cameron bit back a laugh and turned his back on the poor boy. “So, er, you're all  heading up to the temple too,  right ?”

  


“Yep!” Megan said.

  


“We're hoping to find a way home from there,” Andrew said over the sound of a zipper and a jingling buckle. “Ok, you can all look again, I'm decent.”

  


Cameron turned back around. “So, um... I guess, would you mind me tagging along with you, then? Since we're all going to the same place?”

  


“Oh, of course!” Megan beamed at him. “We're all lost here together. Besides, Gabumon just got to meet his friends again.”

  


“It- it would be nice to have you along,” Andrew mumbled, smiling shyly when Cameron looked at him.

  


Cameron  grinned, his shoulders relaxing .  _ I may be lost in a strange and hostile world, but it's nice to know I'm not alone _ .

  
~

When Eleena opened her eyes, she was in a strange place.

  


It was like someone had commissioned MC Echer to paint a traditional landscape, and made the mistake of giving him complete creative freedom. Trees grew upside down along the ceiling, rivers twisted back on themselves and looped up into the sky, and the mountains in the distance seemed to shift perspective whenever she turned her head, now looking far and distant, now looming over her like sentinels.

  


Everything was jittering like the image on a bad TV, and the grass beneath her feet felt all staticky. A low-flying cloud blew over her, and she covered her face, shivering at the sudden cold, damp air.

  


Before her vision could clear, th at same voice was in her ears again. It was louder now,  kind of screechy and grating .  “ _** I ** _ _** ’m glad you’ve accepted my offer.  ** _ _** This is going to be very interesting ** _ _** ” ** _

  


It hurt to listen. She wanted to clap her hands over her ears, but she wasn't about to make this thing- whatever it was- think she was weak. “I-I have! So where’s this power you promised me?”

  


The ground shuddered beneath her feet. All around her, the world glitched, like a video game that was about to crash.  “ _** Patience, human child. Your power will come with time… if you  ** _ _** can prove  ** _ _** that ** _ _** you're WORTHY of it.” ** _

  


Eleena’s hands balled into fists, and her eyes narrowed. “So you're going to test me, huh? Go on, I can handle anything you dish out.”

  


The voice laughed, and this time Eleena did cover her ears, wincing at the squealing nails-on-a-chalkboard sound of it. “ _** Very good… Before we begin, there is something you need to have. Take the Glitch Device out of your pocket.” ** _

  


“Glitch device?” Frowning, she reached into her pocket, and pulled out what looked like some kind of keychain toy.

  


Suddenly it began to rattle and glow, and Eleena almost dropped it. It burned in her palm, and started to warp and shift, straining at the edges like something was about to burst out of it.

  


A glowing, shaking form emerged from the screen. It rolled and hit the ground, and as the strobing light faded, Eleena could see that it was some kind of animal- about three feet tall, covered in dark fur. It had large, floppy ears, and was wearing a red bandanna. There was a bright yellow emblem on its stomach- a smiley face with sharp teeth.

  


Eleena frowned down at it. When the voice had spoken of “Power”- well, this wasn't exactly what she'd expected.

  


The little creature got up, shaking it's head. “Urgh... where am I?” it muttered. Looking around, it caught sight of Eleena, and scowled fiercely. “Oh no, not one of YOU again.”

  


“ _ **Don't speak so to your new master, Impmon,”**_ The voice admonished.

  


“ But it's a  _ human _ !” The creature complained. “A stupid, pathetic human! Why would you make me work with one of them?!”

  


Anger rose up in Eleena's belly. “You little- how _dare_ you!” she grabbed the thing by it's bandanna and lifted it, struggling, into the air. “I could _literally_ drop-kick you, you little shit!”

  


It squirmed in her grip, clawing at her hands. “Let me go! Human, I command you put me down this  _ instant  _ and -!”

  


“ _** ENOUGH!” ** _

  


Eleena dropped the creature to cover her ears as the voice roared, making the entire world around them shudder like the beginning of an earthquake.

  


“ _** Human, do not underestimate this creature; it is weak now, but with your determination, it will grow strong. And Impmon-” ** _

  


Impmon shuddered, covering its face with its hands as though fearing an attack.

  


“ _** Respect your new master as you respect me.” ** _

  


“Y-yes, of course.” Impmon was on it's knees now.

  


“I- I don't know- I didn't ask to be anyone- anything's- master,” Eleena said, hesitantly. Seeing Impmon crouch on the floor like that, so small and vulnerable as the world shook- it sent a sick, all-too-familiar wave of disgust and helplessness roiling through her.

 

She wanted nothing to do with it.

  


“ _** Will you refuse the power I offered you, then?”  ** _ The voice asked, taking on a hard, mocking edge.  “ _** I can send you back, you know. And you can just keep being the useless  ** _ _** little  ** _ _** girl who no one cares about.” ** _

  


Eleena shook, anger and fear and revulsion all fighting inside of her. The voice- it felt wrong, _sick_ , it felt like something that a sensible person should run away from.

 

But. Well. Who said she was a sensible person?

 

She swallowed hard, and stepped forward. “I'll do it. I'll do anything. I'm not afraid.” 

 

She cast a sideways glance down at Impmon, and when it looked up at her, a certain understanding came between them- they didn't have to like each other, but if working together was the only way to become powerful, neither of them would refuse.

  


“ _** Good. If you want power, you must be willing to  ** _ _** make some sacrifices ** _ _**...” ** _

  


All at once, the scenery around them dissolved into a swirl of thick grey smoke.

  


“ _ **Good luck.”**_


	3. Episode 3- Chosen Children

“You know, when you said the temple was just up the mountain trail, I was thinking maybe a fifteen, twenty-minute hike,” Andrew panted out. “We've been walking for _hours_ now, and you're telling me we aren't even halfway there?”

  


“Oh come on, lazybones!” Megan protested. “This is a brisk, refreshing stroll.”

  


“Yeah, I'm half your size and _I'm_ not having any trouble,” Lopmon said smugly.

  


Andrew gritted his teeth. “You've got a bit of a mouth on you, you know that?” 

  


“I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that,” Lopmon said airily.

  


“Ok, settle down you guys,” Megan said. “How much further have we got, Agumon?”

  


“It's just up there, on the ridge.” Agumon pointed up to a cliff on the heavily-wooded side of the mountain before them, where their weak human eyes could just make out a dark, blocky shape nestled among the trees.

  


Andrew groaned. “But that's _miles_ away!”

  


“I'm getting tired, too,” Cameron chimed in. “Maybe we should take a little break?”

  


“I swear to god, boys are so weak.” Megan sighed, crossing her arms. “Although I do find myself getting a bit peckish. Agumon, what is there to eat around these parts?”

  


“Well, we could go fishing,” Agumon, thoughtfully tapping a claw on his lower lip. “Or we could gather berries from the forest.”

  


Andrew stuck his tongue out. “If it's between dead fish and starving, I'd rather starve.”

  


“Wow, you're cheerful,” Megan said dryly, folding her arms.

 

Her glare was getting less playful and more annoyed, and Andrew felt a twinge of guilt. He knew he was dragging them all down with his bad mood, but he couldn't help it. There was a gnawing pit of anxiety in his stomach that he couldn't get rid of.

  


What if they never got home? Cameron wasn't nervous, and Megan seemed to be treating this like an exciting vacation, but what if they really were _trapped_ here? What if they never got to see their families again?

  


He flopped down onto the road, overwhelmed with depression. “If you guys wanna go kill fish, be my guest,” he grumbled.

  


“Um,” Gabumon began quietly. “There's- I think there's human food at the temple.”

  


“Well, then that settles it!” Megan said. “I'd rather keep walking and get a good meal than wait here while my stomach digests itself.”

  


“Oh come on, we can't be the _only_ ones who are getting tired!” Cameron complained. “You must be some kind of machine.”

  


“Yeah, I'm Optimus Prime,” Megan said cheekily.

  


Andrew was just about to make a snappy comeback, when their argument was interrupted by a distant scream.

  


“What was that?” Cameron asked. 

  


“That didn't sound like a digimon,” Lopmon said. “It must be another chosen child!”

  


“Then what are we waiting for?” Megan said. “We need to go make sure they're alright!”

  


“Oh great,” Andrew grumbled, “more running. My favorite.” But he got up and followed the rest of them willingly enough.

  


They didn't have to run for long;  as they reached a bend in the  path , they could see  exactly  what the matter was.  There was a monster on the road before them \-  b ut it  looked nothing like the digimon walking alongside them, or even the  fire-pig from earlier.

  


A huge, sickly pale mass towered over them. It stood roughly two stories tall, with dozens of arms and legs spreading out spiderlike from it's torso. It's head lolled towards them, too big for the rest of it's body, and dozens of eyes blinked open and closed on a broad, flat face.

 

It flickered once, twice, scan-lines coursing up and down it's body. It opened a long, jagged mouth and let out a strange, bleating cry.

 

Andrew felt his mouth go dry in terror. “This- this is too much,” he whispered.

  


“What the _hell_ is that?” Cameron hissed, trying to hide behind Gabumon.

  


“ I-I don't know,” Lopmon said,  horrified . “It's not like any digimon- like  _ anything _ \- I've ever seen!”

  


“ Look, there's the kid!” Megan pointed, and Andrew followed her finger to the ditch on the far side of the road,  past the- the  _ creature _ .  He could just barely pick out a small figure crouched there, frozen like a scared rabbit.

  


“What do we do?” Cameron asked.

  


Megan narrowed her eyes. “I don't know, but we can't just stand here!” And without a second of hesitation, she took off running towards the creature, Agumon hot on her heels. 

  


“Wait! Don't-” Andrew tried to follow her, but his legs, weak from terror, locked up under him. He fell to the ground, watching helplessly as his sister charged headfirst into danger. 

  


~

  


Megan raced to put herself between the creature and the kid. “Hey, ugly!” she yelled at it. “Pick on somebody your own size!”

  


It swung it's bulbous head towards her, and made a metal-scraping noise that sent goosebumps all up her arms. All it's eyes blinked in harmony.

  


She clenched her hands into fists. She thought her heart might just beat out of her chest with terror, but she stood her ground. “Yeah, YOU!”

  


It took a step- or several steps, if you counted all the various limbs it had to move- towards her.  Trembling, she  tried  to think of a way to keep it from turning her into Megan Soup.

  


“ _ Pepper breath! _ ”  A small fireball  smacked into the side of the creature's head . It groaned a horrible, warbling  groan  and turned towards it's attacker.

  


Agumon had followed her. “Let's lead it away from the child!” he yelled, smoke rising from his mouth.

  


She nodded tightly, then took off down the path, waving her hands over her head. “YOO-HOO!” she called, trying to goad it into following her. “Your father was a hamster, and your mother smelt of elderberries!”

  


It lumbered after them, shaking it's head and grumbling as Agumon shot fireball after fireball at it. Behind it, she could see Cameron and Gabumon running over to help the kid out of the ditch.

  


Since she was watching the creature instead of where she was going, she didn't notice the root in the path until her foot caught on it. She fell hard, and her leg twisted at an unnatural ankle, pain shooting up from her ankle.

  


She bit her tongue to hold back a scream and curled up into the fetal position, clutching at her injured leg. It was either a broken ankle or a bad twist; both had happened to her before in Tae Kwon Do and dance classes.

  


Agumon rushed to her side. “Are you ok?” 

  


“I'll be fine,” she gritted out. “But I dunno if I can walk.”

  


The creature roared, and Megan's blood turned cold. She looked up, and it was a  _ lot  _ closer than she'd expected,  and advancing quickly .  _ Well, bugger. _

  


“Megan, get your digivice out!” Agumon said, grabbing onto her shoulder.

  


She didn't have time to come up with a better plan, so she did as he told her and fumbled the thing out of her pocket. Her hands were so sweaty that it almost slipped right out of her fingers.

  


“Hold it up, and believe that I can protect you!”

  


She held it as high as she could. “I believe in you. Save me and my friends!” she yelled.

  


Once again, her digivice emitted a blinding light. The light engulfed Agumon, and Megan's eyes widened in excitement as wild energy swirled around her.

  


The light grew, and grew, and  _ grew _ , and  when it faded, Megan's jaw dropped  in nothing short of flat-out awe.

  


Agumon had turned _awesome_. He was _HUGE_ now _,_ taller than the pine trees surrounding them, taller than the monster. He had developed some sort of dark, bony helmet on his skull, and was covered in bright blue stripes.

  


He roared, and the sound shook Megan to her very core. With one snap of his massive jaws, the monster burst into pieces beneath him, little moats of light that swarmed up into the air and then disappeared.

  


Megan stared up _\- wayyyyy_ up- at Agumon, her mouth open and her eyes wide.

  


He turned to her, and a much deeper voice than usual came from his mouth. “Are you ok? I didn't scare you, did I?”

  


She started to laugh. It was a little hysterical, but it felt good. “No, you were _amazing!_ How did you _do_ that? How did you change?! Can you change back?”

  


“That was digi-evolution!” He crowed. “I turned from Agumon into Greymon!”

  


Megan tried to stand up, but her ankle sharply reminded her why that wasn't a good idea, and she went down on one knee. “Auugh, ok, still injured.”

  


Agumon's- _Greymon's-_ reached one massive claw down to support her, surprisingly gentle despite his new size.

  


She grabbed onto his hand to haul herself up, and then nuzzled her face against his finger. “You really saved my bacon there, buddy. Thanks.”

  


He smiled, and the expression was comfortingly silly on his massive face. “It's only because you believed in me!”

  


~

  


Desoto felt a hand press against his back. “You ok, kiddo?” a gentle voice asked.

 

He looked up to see the tall blonde boy that had helped him earlier was there, giving him an encouraging smile. “The monster's gone. It alright, you're safe now.”

  


Desoto took in a deep breath. “Ok,” he murmured, and slowly got to his feet. 

 

The boy was right; when he looked up, the monster that had cornered him in the ditch was nowhere to be seen. In it's place, the short redhead was talking animatedly with a huge dinosaur digimon, waving her arms around and laughing loudly.

 

He looked down at Patamon, tucked up securely in his arms. “Are you ok?” he asked.

 

Patamon squirmed out of his grip and flapped their wings, hovering in front of him. “I'm fine! Thanks to your quick feet getting us out the way of that thing,” they said.

 

Desoto blushed; as soon as he'd caught sight of the horrible creature cresting the hill behind them, he'd snatched his digimon partner out of the air and took off running until his legs refused to carry him any further. “Well, at least I've got some survival sense,” he said with a chuckle, rubbing the back of his neck.

 

“Um, I think we should check on Andrew,” the blonde boy's digimon said, pointing over at the boy kneeling on the ground some feet away as his digimon talked to him seriously.

  


“Yeah, that's a good idea,” the blonde boy said. He gave Desoto a pat on the shoulder. “Glad you're ok, dude,” he said, then walked off to talk to the other boy.

  


Patamon  landed up on top of his head. “I'm sorry, De- I couldn't protect you from that thing.”

  


Desoto smiled. He'd only known his new partner for a few hours, but he already felt attached to them. “Don't worry about it; we're fine now, right?”

  


Those few hours ago, he'd been safe at home, done with school, and ready to park in front of the TV with his abuela and his baby sister until his parents got home and started nagging him to do his homework. 

  


And that was exactly what he'd been doing when what he now knew as his 'digivice' came out of the screen, glowing with a light so bright that it hurt his eyes.

  


He grabbed it without thinking, mostly to keep it out of his curious sister's grabby two-year-old hands. Then all at once, he'd been swept away to a strange land where he met Patamon, who told him he was something called a 'Chosen Child'.

  


Strangely enough, he hadn't felt afraid. Maybe Patamon was just too little and sweet to seem like a threat, but Desoto had felt totally at home with them, like a friend he'd known for years and years.

  


He hadn't really gotten scared until they ran into that- that _thing_ on the mountain path. He shuddered. Just thinking about it gave him the creeps.

  


“Hey, new kid!” He looked up to see the red-haired girl walking over to him, heavily favoring her left leg. “You survived! Congrats.”

  


“I-I'm fine,” he said shyly. “Thank you... you two saved my life,” he smiled gratefully up at her dinosaur-like companion. It beamed back at him.

  


“No prob. Do you mind if I lean on you?” she asked.

 

“Go ahead.” He took her arm, and she leaned her weight into him with a relieved sigh.

 

“That's much better.” she said, and grinned at him. “We haven't introduced ourselves, have we? My name's Megan.”

  


“Oh- I'm Desoto. It's nice to meet you,” he said, then reached up to pat the digimon sitting on his head. “And this is Patamon.”

  


“And I’m Greymon!” Megan's dinosaur companion said cheerfully.

  


The blonde boy frowned up at him. “Um, I thought you were Agumon?”

  


“That’s my rookie form! Greymon is my Champion form.”

  


“Digimon have different stages of evolution,” the brown rabbit explained. “When we reach a certain level of energy, we can evolve into a more powerful form.”

  


“So you’re all at- what, ‘Rookie’ stage right now?” The blonde boy asked, turning to the digimon at his side, who nodded.

  


“Yes, that’s fine and well, but let’s finish our introductions,” Megan said, looking annoyed at the interruption.”This is my brother Andrew, his partner Lopmon, our new friend Cameron, and his partner, Gabumon.”

 

Andrew raised a hand in acknowledgment, still looking morosely at the ground. Lopmon crossed his arms and glared at his partner.

  


“Thank you all for helping me,” Desoto said. He wasn't sure which of them he should be looking at, so he just looked at his feet, scuffing his shoe in the dirt.

  


“It was no trouble,” Megan said, patting him on the shoulder. “So, lemme guess- you were taking him up to the temple on the mountain, weren't you Patamon?”

 

“Yup!” Patamon said, spreading his wings out across Desoto's head like some kind of bizarre sunhat.

  


“A-are you guys all headed up to the temple too?” Desoto asked.

  


Megan nodded. “That’s what these fellas told us, anyway. Though I’m not sure about it now; my ankle is pretty well shot, and we’re all exhausted.”

  


“Should we- what, make camp for the night?” Cameron asked.

  


“A-hem.” They all looked around to see Andrew finally pushing himself to his feet, brushing the dirt off his knees. There were tear-tracks on his dusty face, but he looked less pitiful than before. “Am I the only one who is seeing the giant dinosaur we have at our disposal?”

  


They all looked up at Greymon thoughtfully.

  


~

  


“This is the beeeeeest!” Megan crowed, rocking with every long stride Greymon took.

  


“I’m gonna be sick,” Lopmon said, leaning over Greymon's hip to look at the ground, then turning away and covering his face with a whimper.

  


Desoto closed his eyes and leaned into the headwind, giggling happily. He'd been a little nervous to actually climb up on the champion digimon's back- it was a _long_ way up off the ground- but as soon as they actually started moving, it was kinda like riding a roller-coaster.

 

(Well, a slow one. With some balance issues.)

 

Patamon was fluttering along beside them, keeping pace remarkably well. He looked content when he was flying, his eyes half-closed and his stubby little legs tucked up against his white belly.

  


“Stop squirming!” Greymon said. “It tickles. And I'm scared you guys are gonna fall off.”

  


“We’re fine. Whoah!” Andrew fell backwards and knocked into Desoto.

 

Desoto grabbed him around the waist and leaned forward to keep them both from tumbling off down Greymon's tail. “Careful!”

 

“Sorry,” Andrew said sheepishly. He gave Desoto a small, shy smile, the first non-miserable expression he'd made since they met.

  


Desoto blushed and looked down. “Don’ worry about it,” he murmured.

 

He didn't really have a lot of friends back home. Kids at school mostly ignored him, and he mostly let them. He played with his little sister and hung out with his abuela and abuelo at home, but that was different. 

 

Back in elementary school he'd actually had a nice little group of kids he played with, but then his family moved out of state- and then he transitioned. And, well- some of the friends he'd _had_ at the time hadn't been… super nice to him about it. 

 

He tended to keep his distance from other kids his age. Part of it was fear of how he'd be treated, part of it, well- he didn't know how to _relate_ to them. He didn't know what he was supposed to say, how he was supposed to act.

 

So he stayed quiet for the rest of the ride, his earlier good mood dampened by his glum thoughts. Patamon seemed to sense his change in attitude, and settled back onto his lap, which was nice.

 

It wasn't long before Greymon slowed down. “We're here!” he said,  and crouched down so the children and their digimon could disembark  safely .

  


One by one, they slid off his back. Desoto's legs wobbled when his feet hit the dirt; he'd spent much more time walking today than he usually did, and muscles he hadn't even _known_ about were aching.

  


“Here it is; the temple of Vega,” Lopmon said proudly.

  


They were standing in front of a building built into the mountainside. Desoto wasn't an expert on temples, but he didn't think this really looked like one. It was a low-slung, spread-out complex, all curves and sweeping shapes, with stained-glass windows and ornately carved doors. It looked more like one of those artsy small houses that rich people commissioned.

 

It wasn't in the best of shape, either; shingles had fallen off the roof in big bald patches, there were several broken windows, and the short wooden deck leading up to the doors was overgrown with climbing vines and weeds.

 

“It doesn't look like much,” Andrew said, frowning.

 

Lopmon glared up at him. “It doesn't _have_ to be much, it's a _temple_.”

  


“What does that even mean?”

  


“It means you humans have no sense of taste or subtlety.”

  


A flash of light interrupted their argument, and Greymon shrunk back down into Agumon. He sat down, hard, and Megan rushed over to him as fast as she could with her bum ankle. 

 

“Are you ok?!” she asked, taking his clawed hands and helping him to his feet.

  


“Yeah, I'm fine- evolution just makes me really tired,” Agumon explained. “And hungry.”

  


“Well then, let's not hang around here looking like a bunch of tourists,” Megan said with a fond little smile. “Let's go inside!” 

 

Leaning on each other for support, she and Agumon walked up the steps to the temple doors and slipped inside.

  


“Hey, wait up!” Andrew said, and ran after them, Lopmon following close behind. As the door swung shut behind them, Desoto could hear them pick their argument back up.

  


Desoto felt weirdly anxious about going inside; maybe it was just because it was all broken down, but the temple gave him a weird, creepy vibe.

  


He felt someone nudge his arm, and turned to see Cameron looking at him with an awkward smile. “Well. Shall we?”

  


Patamon swooped down and landed by Desoto's feet. “Don't be scared; Vega's really nice,” they said.

  


Desoto looked down at his digimon for a moment, chewing thoughtfully on his lip. Then he took a deep breath, and nodded. “Alright.”

 

And he followed the others inside.


	4. Episode 4- Vega

Cameron held the temple doors open so Desoto could follow him in. He stepped inside, and his feet kicked up a billow of dust that sent him into a violent coughing fit. It took him a few moments to adjust and start looking around.

  


They had entered into some kind of combination meeting room/sitting room. A long table dominated half of the space, light spilling out across it's dusty surface from half a dozen tall windows along the west wall. On the other end of the room, there was a tall fireplace surrounded by armchairs that looked like they might be infested with something.

  


The wallpaper was peeling, the floor was coated in thick white dust, and the smell of mildew and rot hung in the air. Cameron wrinkled his nose. “This place really isn't all that,” he muttered.

  


“It was in better repair the last time I was here,” Gabumon said. His paws stirred up huge clouds of dust behind him as he walked, and Desoto sneezed. 

  


“Yeah,” Patamon said. He fluttered up to sit on Desoto's shoulder again, avoiding the dust. “Where _is_ Vega?”

  


“Hey, guys!” Megan's voice echoed from deeper in the temple. “Come check this out!”

 

Cameron and Desoto shot each other a look, and Cameron shrugged. “Might as well,” he said.

  


They followed her voice- and the track of footprints in the thick dust- down a dark hallway until they came into a large, round room with a tall stone dais in the center. The others had gathered around it curiously.

 

Cameron wandered up behind Andrew. “What's that thing?” he asked. It was covered in intricate carvings, and there was a small indentation in the top.

 

“This is how we contact Vega,” Lopmon said. “He can only manifest inside of the temple.”

 

“So, uuhhh… how do we make it work?” Andrew asked.

 

L opmon blinked a few times. “… I don't remember.”

 

“Well, you're useful,” Andrew muttered.

 

“Don't be rude,” Megan scolded her brother. She pushed between him and Cameron to get close to the dais. “Let's try this, then!”

 

She slapped her hand down into the indentation in the top, and it i mmediately, began emitting a bright light from  between her fingers. A strange, shivery wave spread out through the room, like a silent shockwave.

 

All of them scrambled back, Andrew hauling his sister by the arms. “Why do you  always have to  _ touch _ everything?!” 

 

“NO REGRETS!” she shouted.

 

The light dimmed, and an image flickered over the dais. It spun, quickly at first, then slower and slower, until Cameron could make out that it was a bright pink, stylized heart, flanked by a pair of angel wings.

  


“ _Welcome, Chosen Children.”_ A strange voice came from all around them. It sounded like the sort of soothing recorded message that played at airports or in fancy elevators, but a bit off\- a little too high-pitched and mechanical.

  


“ _ I am Vega,”  _ the voice continued as the symbol turned lazily above the dais.  “ _ The guardian spirit of this temple, and the link between the digital world and  _ _ your world _ _ .” _

  


“So wait- Are you the one who brought us here?” Desoto asked.

  


“ _ In times of great danger, the digital world chooses it's own heroes. _ _ ”  _ Vega said, his voice even. 

  


“We're not heroes,” Andrew argued. “This has nothing to do with us. We just want to go home!”

  


“I have to agree with him,” Cameron said. “Why did we get chosen? Why not people who are more qualified?”

  


“Speak for yourselves, guys, I'm totally a hero.”

  


“Shut up, Megan.” Andrew glared at his sister. “My point is, you've obviously got the wrong kids for the job. So can you send us home?”

  


“ _ I'm afraid that's not possible, _ ”  Vega said.  “ _ You won't be able to leave the digital world until the forces threatening it have been eliminated. _ ”

  


Cameron felt his stomach turn.  H e'd been too busy all day to really think about it, but…  what if he really couldn't get home?  Did they seriously have to fight? 

 

If someone had asked him at home if he wanted to be a superhero he would have agreed without thinking- but when he actually had to face down a monster in real life… he'd been terrified. He was still ashamed of how he'd hung back as Megan and her digimon faced down the actual threat.

 

Bottom line, he wasn't cut out for this. He had to get home, back where it was safe- he had to see his parents again, they were probably worried sick about him-!

  


He wasn't the only one freaking out. Andrew got up and started pacing angrily around the room. “This is bullshit!” he growled.

  


“Andrew, calm down,” Megan said. “If the only way that we can get home is to help this place, then, well.. that's just we gotta do.”

  


Andrew glared at her. “And what if we die, Megan? What good will that do for anybody?”

 

“Well, we just need to not die!” Megan crossed her arms. “Seriously, you need to have more faith in yourself.”

 

“We're just a bunch of kids,” Desoto spoke up quietly. “Why does the Digital World think that we can protect it?

 

“ _There are things you can do that grown members of your own species could never hope to achieve,”_ Vega said cryptically. _“Your task will not be a matter of physical or mental prowess, but of the bonds you can form with each other.”_

  


“What exactly _is_ threatening the digital world now?” Megan asked, ignoring the dirty look her brother was shooting her. “What are we up against?”

  


“I have to say, I'm disturbed by how easily you're accepting this,” Cameron muttered.

 

“Shush,” she said firmly.

  


“ _Our current threat is a powerful enemy known as The Glitch,_ ” Vega said. “ _It is a_ _being_ _made entirely of corrupted data; it is so_ _twisted_ _that_ _it warps everything it comes into contact with. It_ _overtakes digimon, turning them into creatures of_ _malice and pain.”_

  


“Wait- is that what that thing we fought on the road was?” Cameron asked. “That big white blobby thing?”

  


“ _ That was a digimon that has been infected by The Glitch, yes. Given free reign, The  _ _ G _ _ litch would corrupt and consume the entire digital world.  _ _ After that, it would turn on your world and destroy it as well.” _

 

There was beat of stunned silence as the four humans processed that. Cameron felt sick; That thing they'd fought on the road had been… horrible.

 

What would happen if those things got into the real world?  Would they even be able to fight such a strange, alien threat on Earth?

 

“Well, that settles it. We  _ have _ to fight!” Megan stepped forward and spread her arms. “We have to protect  our home !”

 

“ None of this is our problem!” Andrew argued. “We should stay out of it.”

 

“It ' ll  _ be _ our problem if we don't do something about it now,” Megan said.

 

“She has a point,” Desoto said- then winced as everyone turned to stare at him. “Sorry. But… if Vega says we can do it… maybe we have a chance?”

 

“ _You have more than a chance,”_ Vega said. “ _ You are the  _ only ones  _ who can complete this task.” _

 

“Well, I'm in, whether the rest of you are or not,” Megan said, crossing her arms. “What do you think, Agumon? Are you ready to kick some corrupted-digimon butt?”

 

“I was born ready!” Agumon said eagerly.

 

“I- I think we have to,” said Desoto. “I don't want anything to happen to my home or my family. And I- I wanna protect this place too. It's your home, right, Patamon?”

 

Patamon sat up on Desoto's shoulder  and nuzzled gently against his cheek. “Thank you- that means a lot to me.”

 

Andrew  turned sharply to Cameron. “I suppose you're on board too, huh?”

 

Cameron shrugged sheepishly. “I mean… What other choice do we have?”

 

He still didn't know if he was cut out for it. But then again, the best superheroes weren't the ones that chose it because they thought it would be fun, or easy- it was the ones who saw a problem, and stood up to solve it.

 

“We'll make a good team, I can already tell.” Gabumon said quietly, taking one of Cameron's hands in his big paw. “It will be a pleasure to fight alongside you.”

 

C ameron grinned, and shook hands with the strange little creature. “Same, dude.”

 

Andrew made a small, strangled noise of frustration. “I still don't agree with this,” he said, his voice sounding thick. 

 

Cameron immediately felt terrible when he realized the younger boy was trying to hold back tears. “Aw jeeze, Andrew, I- I didn't mean-”

 

Vega interrupted him. “ _ It is getting late, and I am sure you all need to rest.  _ _ The temple has ample facilities for food, hygiene and sleep; please make use of them as you wish. I will contact you in the morning, and inform you of the first step you must take on your journey.” _

  


Another pulse of light came from the dais, rippling through the room and dust began to float up off the floor and disappear. All around them, the temple began to repair itself; slivers of glass floated up into light bulbs that flickered on, and broken chairs jumped back together. Dust rose up from the floor and dissolved, wallpaper rolled up and pasted itself back onto the walls, and cracked floor tiles sealed themselves back up.

  


In a matter of seconds, the room around them looked good as new.

  


“Wow,” Cameron whispered.

  


“ _Enjoy yourselves,”_ Vega said, and abruptly the light on the dais switched off, and his spinning symbol disappeared.

 

A ndrew was the first to move in his absence, storming out of the room with his hands clenched at his sides. Lopmon heaved a sigh and walked after him.

 

Cameron made to follow them, but Megan put a hand on his shoulder  and shook her head . 

 

“It's not worth it,” she said. “ He just needs some time to brood; h e'll come around soon enough.”

 

Cameron wasn't convinced, but he supposed Megan knew her brother better than he did. “Ok. Well… didn't Vega say something about food?”

 

~

  


“Andrew?”

 

Andrew curled up into an even tighter ball on the floor, refusing to acknowledge his 'digimon partner'.

 

“Look, this isn't what I would have chosen either,” Lopmon said, his voice muffled by the thick wooden door separating them. “I don't really want to fight, and I didn't want- well, being a Chosen Digimon wasn't exactly my top career choice.”

 

“Go away,” he said, and tried to sniff quietly. He didn't want Lopmon to know he'd been crying. 

 

“But we need to work together, ok?” Lopmon's voice was strained, and Andrew could tell he was admitting something he really didn't want to. (which probably made him a lot more mature than Andrew was at the moment.) “I can't do this without you. And believe me, you're not gonna survive in this world without _my_ help. So please just open this door, and we'll talk like rational-”

 

“I said GO AWAY!” Andrew slammed his fist against the door.

 

Lopmon was quiet for a while. When he did speak, he sounded hurt. “Fine then. I'll go.”

 

Little footsteps patted away, and Andrew rolled onto his side. He felt bad for driving Lopmon away, but there was no way he could face his pragmatic attitude right now. 

 

He was angry. Angry at Vega, angry at Lopmon, angry at whoever thought it was a good idea to recruit a bunch of damn kids as soldiers, but mostly, he was angry at Megan.

 

If what Vega said was true- and didn't think he trusted that shady spirit as far as he could throw him- they had no choice but to fight. Fine. He'd learn to deal with it, he supposed.

 

But how could she just automatically get on board with the whole ridiculous deal? He worried enough about her when she rushed in to fight that awful glitched digimon earlier… now she wanted to fight against the immensely powerful and dangerous being that had made it?

 

She was treating this like it was some kind of game, and he was scared that if she trusted Vega without questioning his motives… things could go very badly. 

 

Didn't she understand that they could really get hurt here? That they could actually die?

 

Didn't she care about getting home, about getting to see their parents again?

 

Didn't she care about him?

 

He sighed angrily and sat back up, rubbing the tears out of his eyes. His hand came away covered in dirt, and he grimaced; after walking all day, he was filthy. Also exhausted.

 

All he wanted was to wash the dirt off his skin, change his  gross clothes, and go sleep for at least a week. So  with some effort he stood up and opened the door.  He peered up and down the hallway and, seeing now one around to harass him, set off to look for a shower.

  


The temple was bigger than it had looked outside, and every room looked kind of similar, so it was easy to get lost. Andrew wandered around for a good fifteen minutes, opening random doors, before he finally found something that resembled a bathroom.

  


It looked like a fancy bathhouse, with an enormous tub set into the wall and beautiful murals painted all around the room. Off to the side were several shower stalls, and at one end of the room there was a door marked “WC”.

 

As he walked further in, his eyes tracing over the murals, t here was a noise behind him.  He stiffened, then turned around slowly, his heart in his mouth. 

  


Tucked away in a corner, curled up as small as she could get,(which was pretty darn small) Megan was sitting with her head on her knees and her arms wrapped around her legs. Her shoulders were shaking, and it took Andrew a moment to realize that she was crying quietly.

  


He rushed to her side, all his earlier irritation melting away.. “Are you ok? What's wrong?”

  


She lifted her head, and forced a smile. “Oh... I'm ok...”

  


He reached out to wipe away the tears tracking down her face. “Of course you aren't.”

  


She gave a little, hiccupy laugh, and uncurled a little. “I'm just... I really wish Mom and Dad were here. I- I'm scared that we might not see them again.”

  


Immediately, he felt horrible for how moody and snappish he'd been all day.  He couldn't believe he hadn't realized how scared Megan was- of  _ course _ she was scared. 

 

But she'd always been the strong one; she might throw a loud tantrum when things didn't go her way, but she preferred to hide away any trace of actual vulnerability.

 

He was her brother, though, and she couldn't hide anything from him for long.

 

He wrapped his arms around her. “Oh, sweetheart... just because I'm being a crybaby doesn't mean you need to act all tough.”

  


“I didn't want to scare you,” she murmured, clinging to him.

  


“ Don't give me that,” he said gently. “ You were the one ragging on me for never telling you when I'm hurting!  Twin code, remember?”

  


She nodded. “I know. I'm sorry.”

  


He shifted her into his lap ad she draped herself over him like an affectionate cat. He giggled and nuzzled his face into her hair. “How's your ankle doing, by the way?”

  


She glanced down at it. “It's fine; I got a bandage and some weird lotion to put on it, and it feels almost good as new.”

  


“That's good.” Andrew pressed a gentle, slightly awkward kiss to his sister's forehead, and she leaned into him.

  


Their tender moment was interrupted as the door swung open  and Cameron and Desoto entered. Cameron froze when he saw them on the floor, and Desoto ran into his back. “Oof- sorry, were we interrupting something?” Cameron asked.

  


“Just me being a wuss.” Megan wiped the last of the tears from her face, and got slowly to her feet. “Oh, De- were you crying too?”

  


Now that Andrew looked more closely, he could see that Desoto's eyes were red and puffy, and he was holding onto Cameron's hand with white knuckles. He nodded, looking embarrassed.

  


Megan jumped out of Andrew's lap and hopped forward to wrap the two boys in a hug. “Oh guys, we'll be ok! We'll kick this glitch-thing's butt, and be back home before you know it.”

  


They both looked surprised at the sudden show of affection, but after a moment, they returned the hug, Desoto burying his face in her shoulder and Cameron resting his chin on the top of her head.

  


Megan looked over her shoulder. “Andrew- group hug time. Get over here.” She jerked her chin up.

  


He hesitated until Cameron shot him a tired smile and waved him over. He came up behind Megan and wrapped his arms around her, much to shy to directly touch either of the boys. 

  


They stood there like that for a long time, holding each other. Desoto started crying again, little snuffly sobs, and Andrew got misty eyed himself. 

 

“I'm sorry I've been such a jerk today,” he murmured. “Megan's right; there's only one way we're getting out of this, and if we have to fight, we might as well do our best.”

  


“We'll have to learn to work together,” Cameron said. He pulled his left arm back and wrapped it around Andrew's waist, pulling him closer into the circle.

  


Andrew felt heat flood to his face. “Yeah- that.”

  


“So- I suppose we're sort of a superhero team now,” Megan said. “This means we need to get matching outfits and give each other cool nicknames.”

  


They all laughed, and Andrew started to feel a little bit better.

 

Megan sighed and leaned back, and the others broke apart around her. She rubbed her face vigorously on her sleeve, then turned to glare at Andrew. “Did you even get anything to eat?”

 

“Oh come on, who are you, my mom?” Andrew protested.

 

She just narrowed her eyes.

 

“...Ok, no, not yet.” All of a sudden, Andrew realized that there was an awful, gnawing ache in the pit of his stomach. 

 

“No wonder you're grouchy, you always get hangry,” she teased him. “Now gimme your arm and I'll show you how to get food; they have these cool machines like the replicators on Star Trek. They have all kinds of stuff; that's how I got the bandage for my ankle.”

 

“It only seems to do like, household objects and stuff,” Cameron said. “Megan kept telling it to make 'A kickass sword' but it wouldn't listen to her.”

 

A laugh of amusement and alarm burst out of Andrew. “Ok, I'm really glad _that_ didn't work out.”

 

“Oh come on. I wouldn't have cut anything important with it,” Megan said.

 

The four of them talked and joked as they made their way back into the big meeting room they'd entered in, where their Digimon were just finishing up a meal.

 

Gabumon and Patamon looked up when they entered, identical looks of concern on their faces. Agumon was busy shoveling potatoes into his maw, and just gave them a friendly wave.

 

Lopmon was sitting at the far end of the table and poking morosely at a plate of vegetables. He kept his head bowed as they walked in, not even acknowledging their presence.

 

Shame washed over Andrew. If he'd been kind of a jerk to the other Chosen Children, he'd been a MASSIVE jerk to Lopmon. He glanced at Megan, who gave him a wink and an encouraging shove towards his partner.

 

He walked over to the end of the table and stood there, his arms behind his back. “Um, Lopmon? I'm- I'm really sorry for shouting at you earlier. “

 

Lopmon didn't look at him, but his ears did flop back slightly, exposing the tight set of his mouth and his downcast eyes.

 

Feeling like an absolute divot, Andrew knelt down by his chair. “Um- like you said, this might not be the most ideal situation, but… if you're willing, I want to try and make this whole partnership thing work.”

 

Lopmon pushed his fork around a little more. Then he heaved a sigh, turned towards Andrew, and slipped out of his chair to stand in front of him. “It's not like we have much choice, is it?” he said, but he seemed less upset than before.

  


He held out one tiny paw, and Andrew carefully reached out to shake it, feeling just a bit better.


	5. Episode 5- Teammates

Deosoto was disoriented for a moment when he woke up- the room around him was too bright, too large, not modern enough to be his bedroom at home.

  


And he usually didn't wake up sandwiched in between two warm, breathing bodies. He stiffened, his eyes snapping open- He began to panic, until he remembered what had happened last night.

 

After the embarrassing break-down he'd had in front of Cameron- who had been incredibly sweet, rubbing his back and trying to cheer him up with corny jokes as he cried- and after their hallmark moment with the rest of the team, they'd cleaned up the kitchen. Once they were done, they'd all been too exhausted to do anything else but file into the nearest bedroom.

 

Desoto couldn't quite remember why they hadn't gotten into separate rooms; Megan had said something about not wanting to sleep alone, and he got the feeling he'd nodded off in the ensuing discussion about who should take the bed and if they should bring in a mattress to set on the floor.

 

Now he found himself wedged in between Andrew and Cameron on the enormous bed they'd found. Cameron was settled against his back, an arm thrown over his hip, and Andrew's dark curls were tickling under his chin, the smaller boy's face pressed into his collarbone and his wide, soft belly pressed in close.

 

On Andrew's other side, the covers were all rucked up like someone else had been lying there, and he got the feeling Megan had been sleeping there. He wondered where she was now.

 

Desoto swallowed, nervous about what would happen when his bedmates woke up. This was certainly cozy, but he was worried they'd get pissed off at him for cuddling up in his sleep, and he was downright paranoid that somehow, by getting this close to him, they'd be able to tell he was trans. 

 

But he couldn't find any way to get up without jostling either of them- they were tucked in very close around him. He let out an amused huff; well, if they wanted to get all 'no homo' about the sleeping arrangements, he'd tell them it was their own dang fault. 

 

So he settled back down and closed his eyes. Just a few more minutes of sleep couldn't hurt...

 

A loud BANG jerked him awake and almost made him jump out of his skin as Megan barged into the room. 

 

“WHATTUUUUP, LOSERS? TIME FOR BREAKFAST!” She started banging together a pot and a large wooden spoon. “GET UP GET UP GET UP!”

  


Cameron shrieked, flailed, and fell of the bed. Andrew groaned and shoved his head under the pillow.

 

Desoto sat up and clutched his chest, his heart still pounding from the shock. “Wh-what?! What's wrong?!”

  


“Wow, you're all pretty jumpy today,” Megan said casually. “It's breakfast time, silly ducks, come and get it!”

  


“Darling sister 'o mine, you have a ten second head start before I brutally murder you,” Andrew growled, pulling the pillow over his head with a white-knuckled grip.

  


Megan flapped her hand dismissively. “Oh, like you're going to commit to any kind of exercise before you've had breakfast.”

  


“Hey, were they awake?” Desoto looked past her and saw Lopmon in the doorway, the other digimon crowded behind hi, jostling each other to peek into the room.

  


“They are now!” Megan said. “Come on in, guys.

  


The digimon came trooping in. Patamon flew up and landed in Desoto's lap. “Hi! I missed you while you were asleep.”

  


Desoto laughed, and hugged the little creature to his chest. It was a nice feeling after his cuddle-time with Andrew and Cameron had been cut short.

  


“Good morning, Desoto. Did you sleep alright?” Cameron asked him, shoving his shirt up to scratch at his belly.

 

He nodded, relieved that the older boy either hadn't noticed they'd been tangled together on the bed, or hadn't cared. He told himself to stop being so nervous; these kids were a lot more touchy-feely than most of the people he knew.

 

“Well, are you lazybones coming in for breakfast or not?” Megan put her hands on her hips and glared at them. “I didn't spend all morning slaving over a hot replicator for nothing. “

 

“Please come in, Megan says we're not allowed to eat until you do,” Agumon said, giving them the most ridiculous puppy-dog eyes for a creature that looked like he belonged in Jurassic Park.

 

“Ok, ok! We're coming,” Cameron said with a laugh, and slid off the bed.

 

Desoto followed suit, letting Patamon slip out of his grasp and flutter around the room. “Andrew? Are you ready to get up?”

 

“Ggghhhrmrmmmm… jus gimme… five more… months...” Andrew shoved his face deeper under the pillow, then stilled.

 

Megan sighed, and went over to him. She leaned down by the pillow and whispered something.

 

Andrew stiffened. “...You wouldn't dare,” he said, his voice muffled by the pillow.

 

“Do I sound like I'm joking?” 

 

Andrew seemed to consider the point. Then, with an immense groan, he hauled himself out from under the blankets and set his pillow aside. His hair was all sticking up at odd angles, and his eyes were just barely squinted open. “This is inhumane.”

 

“How the heck do you get him up for school in the mornings?” Cameron asked.

 

“We're homeschooled, baby.” Megan said, with a grin and a little hip-shimmy. “He used to sleep in past noon like, every day until our parents decided that wasn't healthy.”

 

“Do I look like someone who cares about his health?” Andrew grumbled, but got up willingly enough, yawning and rubbing his eyes. Lopmon was staring at him, looking slightly disgusted.

 

“C'mon guys; last one to reach the dining room is corrupted data!” Agumon said, and raced out of the room, Gabumon, Cameron and a complaining but obviously competitive Andrew on his heels.

 

Without the slightest hesitation, Megan reached out and took Desoto's hand like they were a couple of kindergarteners. “Well, let's not be late; those monsters will devour the whole table is we aren't quick about it,” she said.

 

A little bemused, but not unhappy, he let her lead him out of the bedroom.

 

~

 

Breakfast was quiet, everyone too focused on the massive amounts of food Megan had laid out on the dining table to keep bantering. 

 

Megan leaned her elbows on the table and steadily demolished a stack of pancakes, observing her teammates with satisfaction. 

 

The food here wasn't as good as a home-cooked meal by her mom; it all had the kind of low-impact, dull flavors of frozen meals, but it was fun to eat as much as they wanted of anything without having to cook. Plus, they were all starving after the fight and all the drama yesterday.

 

She was feeling much better after her little break down last night. Sure, this situation still wasn't ideal; she didn't like being stranded away from her family. But otherwise, this was basically her greatest fantasy; to have epic adventures in a magical realm with a cool animal sidekick.

 

The humans weren't too bad, either. She'd hardly had a chance to know Desoto or Cameron, but she considered herself a good judge of character, and they gave her good vibes.

 

She'd been a little worried at first that they might pick on her brother- being a short, chubby gay boy with a kind heart, he was kind of a bully-magnet at home-  b ut Desoto was obviously a total sweetheart, and Cameron seemed like a good guy . 

 

A nd Agumon- well, Agumon was just freaking AWESOME. She watched fondly as he shoveled hash-browns into his open maw, Gabumon scolding him for his bad table manners.  He'd really surprised her yesterday with his sudden evolution; she wondered what other tricks he might have up his sleeve.

 

“So hey, can all of you evolve to Champion level?” she asked.

 

“Ghyuh!” Agumon gurgled out around his full mouth, making Gabumon sigh in dismay.

 

“Yes, we can,” Lopmon said, rolling his eyes subtly. “There are higher levels, too.”

 

“ How many more?” Cameron asked. “And are there any lower than rookie?”

 

“The order goes like this,” Gabumon said, and started counting on his fingers. “Baby, or fresh- that's what we come out of the egg as- in-training, rookie, champion, ultimate, and mega.”

 

“There are other forms some digimon can take,” Patamon said. “But that's pretty rare. Well, it's rare for digimon to even get past champion on their own.”

 

Agumon took a huge gulp. “ But with the help of you guys, us Chosen Digimon can evolve really easily!  The power of your love and trust gives us lots of extra energy.”

 

“So, if Agumon's champion form is Greymon,” Andrew said, making abstract patterns in the syrup on his plate with his fork, “What about the rest of you?”

 

“Ooh yeah, I wanna know what  _ you _ turn into, Gabumon,” Cameron said excitedly. “ I bet it's something really cool, right?”

 

There was an awkward silence all around the table as the digimon eyed each other.

 

Lopmon bit his lip. “I… think that's another thin g we don't remember,” he sai d, sounding frustrated. 

 

“Oh,” Cameron said. “Oh, well- it'll just be a surprise, then!”

 

Megan frowned. “Is it normal that there's so much you guys have forgotten?” she asked. “I mean, like- what can you remember from before you were put in our digivices?”

 

“You know, I'm not sure there  _ was _ a before,” Gabumon said thoughtfully. “I think we might have been created specifically to be your partners.”

 

“But we have memories!” Lopmon said, thumping his paws on the table. “I  _ swear _ I can remember there being a 'before'. Like- there are just these big fuzzy  _ gaps _ everywhere, and I-”

 

A voice interrupted their conversation, and Megan panicked for a second before she recognized it as Vega. “ _When you were summoned to be partners to the Chosen Children, some general information about the Digital World and the workings of your own bodies_ _was input into your data. They are not actually memories.”_ His voice emanated through the room with no visible source.

 

“That makes sense,” Patamon said. “So that we can help guide and protect our partners, right?”

 

“ _Precisely._ ”

 

Lopmon didn't look convinced; for a moment, it seemed like he was about to protest, but then he shut his mouth and looked down at his plate.

 

Megan watched him, chewing thoughtfully. She couldn't help but feel that Vega's explanation was just a  _ bit _ suspicious. If the digimon thought they had memories of a life before they were Chosen- well, wouldn't they at least know that much about themselves? 

 

She had to wonder if there was something Vega wasn't telling them. It worried her.

 

Vega continued; “ _ If you have finished your meal, there is a nearby outbreak of glitched digimon that you are required to take care of.” _

 

Just like that, the lazy  breakfast atmosphere was broken.  Cameron sat up straight, looking excited; Desoto seemed more nervous, and Andrew- Andrew just looked plain scared.

  


“Wait, does that mean there's more than one this time?” he asked.

  


“ _The glitch has overcome a small village of rookie-level digimon. They should not prove to be difficult opponents, but I advise you to keep your guard up.”_

  


“Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm up for another fight,” Megan said, cracking her knuckles.

  


“Yeah!” Agumon crowed, getting to his feet. “Let's go protect the Digital World!”

  


“And try not to die in the process,” Lopmon grumbled.

  


Andrew grunted an unhappy affirmative, and Megan rolled her eyes. _Those two were a match made in heaven,_ she thought.

  


“ _Before you leave- you all have your digivices with you, correct?”_ Vega asked.

  


They all checked in their pockets and pulled out the little gadgets they'd received.

  


“ _Keep them close,”_ Vega said. “ _Not only do they link you to your digimon, they will allow you to access information about the digital world. There is a compass function, a clock function, and if you hold it up towards an unfamiliar species of digimon you will be able to learn it's name and status.”_

  


“Ooh,” Megan murmured, fiddling around with the buttons on her device. “Does it have any games on it?”

  


“ _It is not a toy,”_ Vega said sternly.

  


Megan rolled her eyes. “You don't have much of a sense of humor, do you?”

  


Vega didn't dignify her with a response.  _“I have sent the co-ordinates of the village to your digivices. I have every faith that you will be able to easily neutralize the threat and return safely.”_

  


“You can count on us,” Cameron said with a salute- then seemed to realize that was a bit ridiculous when Vega wasn't even physically present in the room, and pretended to be scratching his ear instead.

  


“I'll do my best,” Desoto said, looking nervous but determined.

  


“Well, what are we waiting for, then?” Megan asked cheerfully. “Let's go! We can all ride on Greymon.”

  


She started to leave the room as the digimon chattered excitedly to each other, but as she passed him, Andrew caught her arm. She turned to see his eyebrows and mouth drawn down in a tight, nervous expression.

  


“Megan-” he bit his lip. “Look- just be careful, ok?”

  


She opened her mouth to say something snarky, but managed to restrain herself. Her brother looked seriously concerned. Instead, she put a hand on his shoulder and said, “I will. You too, alright?”

  


“Oh, don't worry about me,” he said with a strained laugh. “At the first sign of danger I'm sacrificing the rest of you to save my own butt.”

  


“Now there's the brother I know and love,” she said, patting his cheek fondly.

  


~

  


Eleena hauled herself up a short cliff, scraping her knee on a jutting rock. She was careful where she put her hands and feet, carefully testing out handholds before she trusted her weight to them. After spending so long in this funhouse world, she knew not to even put faith in the ground under her feet.

  


Finally she reached the top of the cliff, crawling up and kneeling there for a moment to catch her breath. Her body ached all over from the climb.

  


Behind her there was a whimper and a scuffling, and she turned and scowled at the black ears that peeked over the ledge; Impmon, as usual, was lagging behind. 

 

With a long-suffering sigh, she walked back to the edge of the cliff. She reached down and grabbed it by the tail, hauling it up and dumping him unceremoniously onto solid ground.

  


I t  glared up at her, baring it's useless little teeth in a lopsided sneer . “I- don't- remember-  _ asking _ \- for help,” it  panted, it's little stomach heaving with breath.

  


“Well, you needed it,” she replied tersely. “Trust me, if I could just abandon you here and go on by myself, I would.”

  


“Yeah, well, I don't need you either!” Impmon stood up, dusting itself off. “If I didn't have to keep babysitting you, I would have already-”

  


“Shut up,” Eleena hissed. When Impmon opened it's mouth to argue, she waved a hand at it. “No, seriously, there's something out there.”

  


They peered into the fog that  blanketed the whole world around them, obscuring anything more than a few feet in front of them. She could just barely made out  several figures floating  in the mist, waiting for them.

  


For the past hours- days?- oh, Eleena didn't even want to pretend that she could tell time in this hellhole- ever since The Voice had sent them here, they had been forced to navigate through various physical challenges while trying to avoid strange phantoms that appeared out of nowhere. 

 

They were easy enough to fight- one punch from Impmon would disperse them into a pixelated cloud before they disappeared- but they were quick and had long, sharp claws that hurt like hell if they met her skin.

  


She was exhausted after hours of trudging around, trying to find some kind of exit or end goal to this farce. Oddly enough, she hadn't felt the urge to eat or sleep yet, but she would have killed for ten minutes to sit down and rub her aching feet.

  


This wasn't the time for rest, however. Straightening her shoulders, she walked into the fog, Impmon following at her heels. The phantoms didn't seem to be very smart; if they stayed quiet and moved quickly, half the time they could avoid-

  


\- She screamed in pain as clawsa raked over her shoulders. She ducked and rolled forward to avoid a second attack, mashing her face into the ground as she fell.

 

She scrambled to her feet, ready to run- only to find herself completely surrounded by phantoms, chittering and clacking their creepy talons together.

  


“ _Infernal Funnel!_ ” Impmon snarled, throwing shards of fire and ice in a circle around it. The phantoms screamed, several of them bursting into bright sparks as they were hit. The rest of them swarmed forward to attack.

  


One of them fell on Eleena with a wail. She gritted her teeth and fought back, shoving her elbow into a red eyed, sharp toothed face. Hitting them was painful, like their skin was made of broken glass.

  


“Master, behind you!”

  


Eleena turned just in time to see Impmon leap in between her and a phantom that was trying to sneak up on her. It lashed out, kicking the phantom in the head. It disappeared in a shower of sparks.

  


After destroying the majority of the phantoms, the rest seemed to realize they were outmatched and flew away, shrieking like bats. 

 

Eleena and impmon stood there for a moment, staring at each other and breathing hard.

  


Eleena straightened up, pushing her hair out of her face. “Don't call me that,” she said quietly.

 

She didn't really know why it bothered her so much, but it did. She definitely hadn't wanted to be partnered up with Impmon, but if they had to work together, she didn't want to be _responsible_ for it.

  


“What-” Impmon frowned. “I was told to call you master. I don't like it, but I can't just-”

  


“I don't care,” Eleena said, folding her arms. “I'm not anyone's master. My name's Eleena. Just call me that, ok?”

  


It looked up at her for a minute, it's eyebrows cocked. “...Ok, whatever.”

  


Feeling awkward, she turned away from the little monster and kept walking.

  


~

  


Impmon didn't understand this human.

  


His memory was fuzzy in places; he could remember there was a time before he had lived within The Glitch, but he couldn't really remember any concrete details about that time. Just little bits and pieces that never added up to a cohesive whole.

  


But one thing he could definitely remember was that humans were _the worst_. Stupid, arrogant, clumsy creatures who thought that just because they were weak and slow they could make digimon do all the work for them. 

  


He _hated_ humans.

  


And for all  intents and  purposes  he could think of, this one was just like the rest; loud, annoying,  completely and utterly full of itself. But…

  


Well, again, his memories weren't very clear. But one thing he remembered was that humans always, _always_ insisted  he should call them 'master'. 

  


This one didn't.

  


It was a small thing, but it was confusing Impmon to no end. Humans always took any opportunity they had to lord themselves over digimon and talk about how superior they were.  This one looked actively uncomfortable, almost disgusted at the idea of Impmon calling it 'master'. 

  


This wasn't enough to convince him not to hate it or anything. But he had to admit  that  it wasn't  _completely_ useless. At least  this human actually deigned to fight the phantoms itself, and did a surprisingly good job of it.

  


Impmon was distracted from his thoughts by a low growl form the human. He looked up in alarm to see it pulling its long hair out of it's face.

  


“This is driving me up the wall,” the human muttered to itself. “Wish I'd thought to bring a damn scrunchie… can I just tie it in a knot?”

  


It noticed Impmon staring at it, and scowled. “What are you looking at, pipsqueak?”

  


Impmon snorted. “What, are you fighting with your own hair now?”

  


“Yes.” The human's mouth pulled into a thin line. “I've been fighting with this bullshit since I was five years old. Maybe if I can find a sharp rock I can just hack it off...”

  


Impmon was completely prepared to keep walking and ignore the human's petty crisis- but then  he had a sudden idea.

  


He  looked down at the bandanna around  his neck.  _I shouldn't even bother- why should I help some stupid, stinking human? But, well… I suppose it could give me some leverage._

  


Impmon untied its bandana and held it out. “Here- use this, and stop whining.”

  


The human stared at the offering for a long moment, suspicious. “Why… why are you helping me?” it asked.

  


Impmon rolled his eyes. “Look, we're in the same boat now, aren't we? If you die because your ridiculous hair gets in your way during a fight, The Glitch won't give me the power I want.

  


The human just continued to stare at Impmon like he had grown an extra head.

  


“Look, if you don't want it, never mind,” Impmon huffed, and went to tie it back around his neck.

  


“Wait- no. I'll take it.” The human reached down and snagged it out of Impmon's hands. It pulled all it's hair back into a long ponytail, then clumsily wrapped the bandanna around it to keep it in place.

  


It shook it's head back and forth for a second, testing it, then sighed in relief. “Much better.” It looked down at Impmon, seeming to consider the digimon. “...Thanks, I guess.”

  


Impmon huffed and looked away, trying to pretend he wasn't just a _bit_ pleased. “You better not get your human germs all over it.”

  


“I'll try my best,” The human said dryly. “Come on, we've wasted enough time.”

  


Impmon watched the human… what had it said it's name was? Eleena- walk off, and shook his head slowly.

  


He still didn't understand humans. But maybe this one wasn't quite so bad.


	6. Episode 6- Doubts and fears

Greymon did indeed give them a ride down the mountain. Andrew was beginning to wonder where the line between 'badass dinosaurian killing machine' and 'personal bus' was drawn.

 

He wasn't looking forward to this at all. He had no pride, he was perfectly happy to admit that the glitched digimon they'd fought yesterday had scared the living daylights out of him, and if he never had to see one of those things again, it would be too soon.

 

But if thirteen years of living with his sister had taught him anything, it was that once she got an idea in her head, arguing with her was a lost cause. Her current idea was that a bunch of scared tweens with animal sidekicks made good warriors, and apparently he was along for the ride. 

 

Lopmon didn't look much happier; he was sitting in front of Andrew with his head bowed and his ears drooping low over his face. In fact, he'd been looking pretty sour ever since Vega had informed them this morning that the digimons 'memories' were just information he'd planted in their heads. 

 

It made him think that Lopmon didn't quite trust Vega as much as the other digimon did; and that was... not exactly _comforting_ to Andrew, but at least somewhat gratifying.

 

“What _is_ Vega, anyway?” he asked, voicing a question that had been rattling vaguely around in his head ever since they arrived at the temple. 

 

“He's a spirit,” Lopmon said shortly. 

 

“Yeah, you've said- but what does that mean?” Andrew leaned back, resting his hands on Greymon's warm, leathery hide for balance. “Like, is he a ghost? Or is he a digimon like you?”

 

Gabumon leaned around Cameron to answer him. “I don't think anyone really knows. There are creatures in this world other than digimon.”

 

“What's he here for, then?” Megan joined the conversation from all the way up on Greymon's neck. “Like, is helping out new Chosen Children his job, or what?”

 

“Vega's just Vega,” Greymon's low, gravelly voice sent vibrations up through Andrew's legs. “He doesn't have to be _for_ anything, he just is.”

 

“That's very Zen of you,” Megan said, amused.

 

“Thanks! Um, what's a Zen?”

 

The conversation moved on as they continued down the mountain. But Andrew kept thinking about Vega.

 

Were they right to trust him? It seemed awfully suspicious that no one seemed to know who Vega was or where he'd come from. And here they were, doing whatever he told them to without question.

 

Well, at the moment it wasn't like they had much of a choice. But in his head, he decided he was going to hold onto his suspicions until they'd been definitively proven wrong. 

 

Before he could think about it much more, Greymon came to a sudden halt. “I think we're here!” he said over his shoulder to them, and then crouched down to let them disembark.

 

They had arrived at a dip in between mountain ridges,  just  large enough for a handful of small huts to be built in a circular pattern. Andrew slid down off Greymon's back  and looked around, his stomach sinking.

 

The ground had been scarred and churned up in deep ruts all around them. Most of the huts were damaged in some way, holes blown through their thatched roofs and wooden walls. It looked like the scene of a pretty impressive fight, and there was no evidence of survivors.

  


“I've got a bad feeling about this,” Cameron said.

  


“Oh come on, what's going to hurt us with Greymon around?” Megan asked, patting her digimon on the calf. Greymon growled happily at the attention.

  


“Aaaand now we're cursed. Good job, sis,” Andrew grumbled.

 

From behind him, he heard Desoto gasp loudly.  “ G uys, there's something in the forest!”

 

A ndrew  looked up at the trees, and swallowed when he saw thousands of bright, glittering eyes watching them.  A high-p it ched chittering noise  echoed all around  the ruined village. It sounded uncomfortably like laughter.

 

He backed up towards Greymon, clutching at his chest in fear. Next to him, Lopmon's fur bristled and he bared his teeth, ready for battle.

  


“Don't panic,” Megan said, standing tall and confident in the middle of their group. “As long as we stick together and keep our heads, there's nothing they can do toaaaAAAAGH HOLY SHIT-!”

  


As if her words had been their cue, the glitchmon began swarming out of the trees, descending upon them like a biblical plague. Megan continued to scream as about fifteen small but incredibly fast little monsters latched onto her body.

  


Greymon roared and started firing nova blasts into the swarm of glitchmon, but most of them were quick enough to avoid his attacks. They began to climb his legs, biting into his tough orange hide.

  


Andrew shrieked as one of them hopped towards him. It had a squat, lumpy body, with long folded legs like a frog or a grasshopper and a face like something _very_ unfortunate had happened to a bulldog. It made that awful chittering noise again, like babytalk sped up and played backwards, and jumped at his face.

  


BAMPF! Lopmon spun into it's path, swinging his ears like nunchucks, and bopped it aside. It hit the ground and exploded into a shower of sparks. 

 

He landed on his feet, arms raised, the fur around the ruff of his neck standing on end like an angry cat. “Stay behind me,” he ordered.

  


Andrew obeyed, terrified. 

 

All around  them , the battle had turned to complete chaos; Greymon was stomping around and roaring as the things swarmed up his  legs and torso , unable to twist around far enough to bite them.  Andrew could hear Cameron yelling, but couldn't see him, and there was no sign of Desoto or Patamon.

 

“ _Petite twister!_ ” Lopmon yelled, and sent a small tornado hurling towards his opponents. It poofed one, but three more ganged up on him, squealing triumphantly as they cornered him and pounced. He collapsed to the ground with a cry as the glitchmon crawled over him, fur flying in all directions.

  


“ N-no!”  Andrew stared in horror as his partner was savaged. “ Lopmon, get up! Evolve! Come on, come on!”

  


“Gh- Andrew, you have to- AH!” Lopmon cried out, then went silent and still under the attack.

  


Andrew's whole body went cold, and he realized that these things- they were actually going to  _ kill _ Lopmon.  _ No! He can't die! Not like this- not for my sake! _

  


Andrew wasn't brave- not all. But he couldn't just stand by and watch these monsters rip his partner limb from limb. He had to do _something_.

 

He clenched his hands into fists. Screwing up every ounce of courage he could muster, he jumped forward and fell into the fight. “LET HIM GO!”

  


~

  


Cameron swung his fist at one of the attacking glitchmon. Bad move- it clung to his arms and unhinged two separate toothy jaws, screaming at him in stereo.

  


“Ew, god!” He frantically flapped his arm and sent the thing soaring off into the bushes. 

  


“Cameron, are you alright?” Gabumon shouted back at him. “ _Blue blaster!”_ He shot a stream of blue fire at one of the little terrors, and it evaporated into static fuzz.

  


“I'm fine, look out for yourself!” Cameron faced forward and put his fists back up, shaking with fear.

  


The battle had quickly gotten out of hand. From what Vega had told them, he thought this would be an easy fight, especially with Greymon on their side.

 

Boy had HE been wrong.

  


Something landed heavily on his shoulders, unbalancing him. He fell forwards with a yell and faceplanted in the dirt. “Oof- foul, FOUL!”

  


Dozens of awful, sticky little feet began crawling up his back, and teeth set into his skin from every direction. He yowled and tried to struggle out from under the glitchmon dogpile. “I take it back! I need your help! _Gabumon_!”

  


Gabumon's tense voice came from a distance. “Get out your digivice!”

  


One of the things was chewing on his left arm, which made the task significantly more difficult. He had to cross his right arm over his body and snatch the digivice off his belt.

  


“Now believe in me! Believe in me as hard as you can!”

  


Cameron shut his eyes tight as he was bitten and scratched by the glitches. He believed in his partner; it felt absurd, but he'd never believed in anything as hard as he believed in the little furry cartoon lizard that he'd only met yesterday.

  


His digivice heated up in his hand. The creatures swarming over him stiffened, seeming to sense the energy swirling out from it.

  


“ _Fox fire!”_ A deep voice snarled, and all the hairs on Cameron's body stood on end as he felt a wave of cold pass just over him, blasting the glitchmon into pieces.

  


Cameron groaned and sat up,  rubbing his arm- he was gonna be covered with bruises later . “Thanks buddy, you-  _ whoa _ .”  His eyes widened as they set on his partner's champion form.

  


Gabumon was now a massive grey wolf covered in blue stripes and a thick mane that stood up along his shoulders and back. He huffed softly at his partner. “It was my pleasure.”

  


“So what's your- no, wait-” Cameron held up his digivice and, just like Vega had said, it displayed information about the new digimon on its screen.

  


_ Garurumon. Level- Champion. Type- Vaccine. _

  


“Wow,” Cameron whispered.

  


“Come on; let's clean house,” Garurumon said, dipping his head down to Cameron's level.

 

He grinned, and scramble up onto Garurumon's shoulders. “Yeah, let's finish this!”

  


~

  


Andrew wasn't sure how late it was when he came creeping out of the bedroom. He could see the full moon rising beyond the mountains through the big windows in the dining room, and he stood watching it for a while, his arms wrapped around his shoulders.

  


He'd been careful not to wake any of his friends when he got up. It had been hard to disentangle himself from Desoto's snuggly embrace. _That kid is too adorable for his own good,_ Andrew thought fondly.

  


They had all gotten back from the mission in one piece- more or less. Cameron was a little chewed up, but Megan and Greymon were fine, and Desoto and Patamon had apparently kept out of harm’s way by hiding in a tree.

  


Lopmon, though....

  


He sighed. He'd gotten up for a reason; he couldn't avoid it forever.

  


He continued onward to Vega's room, where Lopmon was laying on a pallet in front of the raised dais in the center. Andrew knelt next to him, and reached out to touch his face- then thought better of it.

  


His wounds were almost healed, pink scars slowly fading away as his fur grew back. He was surrounded by the faint red glow of Vega's power, and Andrew had to grudgingly admit that he was pretty glad for Vega's presence right now.

  


“ _ You have questions, child?” _

  


He looked up to see the spirit himself spinning slowly above the dais. Even though Vega's form had no eyes, he got the definite sense of being watched.

 

Andrew narrowed his eyes.  Oh, he had questions. He was full to bursting with questions, most of them angry,  many of them suspicious,  some of them bordering on accusatory.

  


But there was one in particular that hung heavy on his mind. He looked back down at Lopmon. “Vega... can digimon die?”

  


Vega went still for a moment.  “ _ ...  _ _ Y _ _ es. Digimon aren't unlike you organic creatures; they age as their data decays, and they can be wounded or fall ill. And they eventually die.” _

  


“What about the digimon that become corrupted?” Andrew asked. “Does that mean… we're killing digimon?”

  


“ _ The digimon that have been corrupted have lost their identity; they are nothing but mindless beasts anymore.” _

  


Andrew propped his chin in his hands. “Still- it seems so cruel.”

  


“ _ You are giving them mercy, child,” _ Vega said.  _ “The life of a glitched digimon is painful. And I am sure they would not wish to infect the rest of the world, as they would if they were allowed to roam free.” _

  


Andrew stayed silent. Eventually, Vega continued;  “ _ But that isn't what truly worries you, is it? You are concerned for your partner.” _

  


Andrew winced. “If it turns out you can read minds, I'm out of here.”

  


“ _ Lopmon was injured rather badly when you returned from your mission, and you were upset. It wasn't hard to put the pieces together. _

  


Andrew shuddered, trying not to think of what it had been like to drag Lopmon's half-dead body back to the temple.

 

He'd been lucid enough to start struggling by the time they reached the temple, and he kept insisting that he was perfectly fine and for them to stop _fussing_ over him, which only made it harder for Andrew. If they hadn't gotten him to Vega as quickly as they had- 

 

Andrew shook his head. He didn't want to think about what could have happened.

  


“Vega, I think he was actually willing to die for me today.” Andrew said, looking down at his hands in despair. “He _would_ have, if I hadn't stepped in to stop him. I can't let that happen! I don't want him to sacrifice himself for me!”

  


“ _A chosen digimon knows that it_ _is meant_ _to fight for it's partner.”_ Vega said solemnly. _“_ _You are meant_ _to have faith in your_ _digimon_ _so that_ _it_ _may succeed.”_

  


“Yeah, well, I never asked for this!” Andrew stood up. “And I'm pretty sure Lopmon didn't ask to be tethered to a useless jerk like me. It's- it's just not right.”

  


He started to leave. He'd been an idiot to come to Vega for help; he still didn't even _trust_ the guy. He gave on last lingering, sad look down at Lopmon. “Just- just make sure he heals up alright, ok?”

  


“ _You can't change fate, Andrew,”_ Vega said. “ _No matter how hard you try. All you can do is make the best of the situation given to you.”_

  


“Oh, go write it in a fortune cookie,” Andrew said, and slammed the door shut behind him.

  


~

  


It was a few days until their next 'Mission', days which Megan spent exploring and mentally mapping out the temple.

  


It was laid out in a sensible pattern once she got used to it; she found two bathrooms, a library, some kind of training room, and four other bedrooms. She shut these up without mentioning them; she'd gotten too fond of sleeping together with the rest of her teammates to bring up the idea of them moving into separate rooms.

  


What she didn't find was any hint of who had built the temple, who had lived there previously, or any information about Vega or the digital world at large. She'd been excited to discover the library at first, but once she actually started picking up books and flipping through them, she found that they were all blank inside.

  


Despite what Andrew might think, she wasn't dumb; she didn't trust Vega either. But until she learned more about the Digital World, she didn't really want to get on bad terms with the one person in this weird place that was giving them information, however vague and suspicious it was.

  


So when her searching proved fruitless, she turned to more pleasant things; namely, playing with her digimon partner and her new friends.

  


One sunny day found her and the gang out on the lawn while she taught the digimon about some important human traditions.

  


“It's easy; you just kick the ball back and forth.” Megan said, dribbling the soccer ball she'd managed to get out of the replicator with her knees. “You can also bounce it off your head, chest or knees, but no arms. When it goes into the other person's goal, you score a point.”

  


Agumon stared at the bouncing black-and-white ball. “What happens when you score a point?” he asked.

  


“Well, if one team gets enough points- let's say five for this round- you win!”

  


“And what happens when you win?”

  


“You win!”

  


“How many years has it been since you actually played soccer?” Andrew asked. He had agreed to be goalie for her team, mostly because he knew how hard she kicked and was unwilling to get into her line of fire. 

 

Cameron,  stretching off to one side with a wide grin on his face, was on “Team Humie” with them. Agumon, Gabumon and Lopmon  made up  “Team Digi”. Lopmon had been voted as Team Digi's goalie, and he had the look of a soldier ready to do battle. Megan approved.

  


Desoto and Patamon had offered to stay on the sidelines and keep score. Megan was a little disappointed; she'd noticed how hesitant he was to participate when the rest of them did anything together, and she wanted to help bring him out of his shell. But she had to admit that Patamon's wings might give a bit of an unfair advantage.

  


She stuck her tongue out at her brother. “I was six, and they kicked me off the team because I was too awesome and made everyone else look bad.”

  


“She bit the coach,” Andrew said, with a dreamy smile of nostalgia.

  


“That too. Hey De, come start us off!” she waved him over.

  


Desoto came forward hesitantly and took the ball from her hands.

  


“Just kick it into the middle of the field.” Megan indicated the stretch of grass that she'd marked off with string, piling up branches for makeshift goals on each end.

  


He looked at the ball hesitantly, then smiled thoughtfully. “Hey, Patamon, do you think you could carry this up and drop it?”

  


“Sure!” Patamon swooped down and grabbed the ball from his hands, then flapped up over the field. “Ready?”

  


“That depends,” Megan grinned at Agumon. “You guys ready to have your butts whooped?”

  


“I've never been more ready! Wait, that's not what I meant to- oof!”

  


Patamon fumbled the ball, and it dropped right onto Agumon's head. As soon as it touched the ground, everyone dove for it at once. The ensuing match was fast-paced and brutal.

  


“MINE!”

  


“Get your fur out of my face!”

  


“I got it I got it I got- I don't got it shit never mind-!”

  


“GABUMON, THAT'S THE WRONG GOAL!”

  


“Hahaha, score!”

  


“ _ Pepper breath!” _

  


“Hey, that's cheating! And dangerous!”

  


They were fifteen minutes in, and the Humies were 3- 2 on the Digis when Vega interrupted the game.

  


H is voice  echoed out from the temple.  “ _ There is another corrupted Digimon that requires your attention.” _

  


“Aww, but we were winning!” Cameron said dejectedly.

  


“Yeah, just keep telling yourselves that,” Lopmon snarked.

  


“ _ The fate of the digital world is more important than a game. Please come inside so you can be briefed on the threat.” _

  


Megan sighed. “We'll finish this later. Come on guys,” and with much muttering and grumbling, they all trooped back inside.

  


~

  


“ _ Am I correct in  _ _ saying  _ _ that only Agumon and Garurumon have managed to evolve so far? _ ”

  


The kids and their digimon, all gathered around Vega's dais, nodded. Patamon looked dejected, his ears drooping as he sat in Desoto's lap. 

 

A ndrew was staring down at his hands,  nervous- or angry, maybe?

 

Lopmon glared at him. The scars on his arms and back were already pink and fading, his healing accelerated by whatever Vega had done to his body.

 

Words couldn't capture the humiliation of having to be rescued by a  _ human _ . Sure, he was happy he wasn't dead, but if Andrew had done what he was  _ supposed _ to do  in the first place, he wouldn't have had to bodily throw himself into the fight to protect him.

 

“ _ This is  _ _ to be expected,”  _ Vega said. _ “ _ _ E _ _ volution to champion level takes a strong bond of trust  _ _ and belief  _ _ between a digimon and its human partner. The human must put all their trust in the digimon's ability to defend them, and the digimon must think of nothing but defending their human. It can take some time for such a bond to form properly.” _

 

And that was exactly the problem. Andrew didn't trust him. He was civil enough these days, but Lopmon could  _ feel _ how uncomfortable he was around him.

 

He was holding up  _ his _ end of the bargain; back at the village, he'd been completely ready to throw himself into the fight, He may not  _ like _ his human, but it was his job to protect him, and he was ready to do it.

 

It was Andrew's lack of trust that had held him back. If he'd just  _ trusted _ him, he could have evolved  by now...

  


“ _ Unfortunately, time is not on our side. We must defeat The  _ _ G _ _ litch as soon as possible.”  _ Vega's flickering avatar spun to a stop. _ “Therefor, for this mission, I will be splitting you up.” _

  


Andrew's head snapped up. “Wait, WHAT?”

  


“Um, no offense, but that's, like, a terrible idea?” Megan said. “Look, we barely survived that last fight, and that's _only_ because we had two champion level digimon with us!”

  


“ _ And if you continue to rely on those two digimon being able to evolve, you may find yourself in even worse trouble along the line.”  _ Vega said firmly.

  


“I don't like this,” Megan said, crossing her arms.

 

“Seconded,” Andrew muttered.

 

Desoto  and Cameron said nothing, but they gave each other a very  nervous look.

 

L opmon put his ears back, irritated.  He didn't appreciate how little faith these humans put in their digimon… but Gabumon and Patamon were also looking apprehensive, so it probably wasn't the best time to kick up a fuss.

  


“ _ I understand your concerns, but I have the utmost confidence that you will return safely from this mission.”  _ Vega started spinning again.  “ _ Andrew and Cameron will be crossing the southern mountain to deal with the threat.  _ _ Megan and Desoto, you will  _ _ stay here and watch the temple.” _

  


Gabumon made a small sputtering sound. “Hold on, now!” He stood up. “I can't defeat one of those things on my own!”

  


“ _Greymon managed it_ ,” Vega said simply.

  


“I- well-” Gabumon fiddled his claws together. “That was different. What if this one is more powerful?”

  


“Dude, I'm sure it'll be fine,” Cameorn said, putting a hand on his shoulder, but he still looked nervous.

  


“And what, you're splitting Megan and I up?” Andrew stood up, furious. “What are you thinking?!”

 

“Yeah, no, that's not happening,” Megan said decisively. 

 

Lopmon finally decided he'd had enough. He tugged on the hem of Andrew's shirt to get his attention. “I don't understand what you're complaining about, Andrew. I can protect you.”

 

“Yeah, or you could get your butt kicked,” Andrew growled. “Again.”

 

He glowered up at his human. “That wasn't my fault. If you gave me half a chance, I could _fight_ for you. What part of Vega's explanation went over your head? You need to trust me!”

 

“Trust you? I Hardly know you!” Andrew spread his arms out. “I'm not trying to insult you, I'm just trying to be practical!”

 

“Well, mean it or not you _are_ insulting me,” Lopmon growled. 

 

“Guys, please don't fight,” Desoto pleaded.

 

“ _The longer you delay, the more destruction this glitched digimon will cause_.” Vega's voice took on a hard edge. “ _Do you truly wish to waste time arguing?”_

 

“We wouldn't be arguing if you just let me and Agumon go with him!” Megan argued. “If Greymon and Garurumon fight together, they'll be fine!”

 

“No, you know what?” Andrew folded his arms. “It's fine, I'll go. If I die out there at least we'll finally have some proof that we can't trust you.”

  


He stormed out, like he always did. Lopmon heaved a sigh, and went to follow him. “Andrew! Get back here, I'm not finished with you.”

  


“I need to pack!” Andrew yelled back.

  


He balled up his hands into fists. He knew he should follow him, try and fix this, try and make everything right to what it _should_ be- but damn it all, he was tired of trying to force Andrew to care.

  


Vega, as usual, ignored the human drama going on around him.  _“I would suggest the rest of you prepare as well. You should leave within the hour._ ”

  


Lopmon could feel Megan's eyes on him, pitying. Agumon's eyes, confused. Everyone was staring at him.

  


He turned and walked out like Andrew had. He hated this.

  


He  _hated_ it.

  


~

  


Half an hour later, Andrew and Cameron had finished packing provisions for their trip and were about to set off, riding on Garurumon's back.

 

Lopmon and Andrew were very obviously not on speaking terms, pointedly avoiding each others eyes as they draped the bags of provisions over Garurumon's back. Cameron looked supremely awkward, caught in the middle of their silent feud. 

 

Megan wished she could do something to help them out. She wished she could find the perfect words that would make them all realize they were on the same team and that fighting like this was pointless.

  


But no such words came. So she contented herself with clasping he brother's arm when he walked past her, and quietly telling him, “Be careful, ok?”

  


“ I will be .” Andrew said quietly. “ You too.”

  


Megan sighed and patted him on the cheek. “Try not to be too hard on Lopmon, ok? He's trying his best just like you are.”

  


He sighed heavily, his face twisting, but he didn't snap at her. “Yeah… I know. I'll see you soon. Have fun hanging out with De.”

 

He gave her a brief hug, and then he and Cameron  got on Garurumon's back, and they  were riding away across the mountain, waving back at them.

  


Megan shot a sideways glance at Desoto, who was fidgeting nervously.

 

When she caught his eyes, he smiled sheepishly. “Um... I guess- I'm sorry it ended up like this. I know you'd probably rather be with your brother right now.”

  


She pushed herself to be cheerful for his sake. “Honestly, it's a relief to be rid of him for a bit,” she joked. She slung her arm around his shoulder. “Come on, let's go play more soccer; I'll teach you how to kick a ball like you mean to kill a man.”

  



	7. Episode 7- Friendship and Trust

_I always thought that if a time came in my life where I was riding a magical beast across the land with my arms around a hot boy, I'd be a little happier about it,_ Andrew thought.

 

He was clinging to Cameron's back as Garurumon sprinted across the mountains. Lopmon was behind him in turn, whimpering slightly at every jolt of movement.

 

They hadn't said a word to each other since that morning. Andrew knew that their fight had mostly been his fault, but he had no idea how to make it right.

 

Lopmon's attitude was simultaneously worrying and aggravating. What kind of person was ok devoting their life to protecting someone they didn't even _like_? And beyond that, why did he have to get mad at Andrew for simply being concerned about him?

 

It didn't make any sense. Well, nothing in this awful, mixed-up world did, so at least it followed form.

 

Lopmon groaned and tightened his grip on the back of his shirt suddenly. “Garurumon, you're my friend, but can you _please_ stop moving like a drunken sailboat?”

 

“I'm sorry Lopmon, but this is the only way I can run!” Garurumon said. “I mean, I could slow down, but then it would just take longer...”

 

“What kind of a digimon gets motion sickness anyway?” Cameron asked. “Do you even have any organs to jostle around inside of you?”

 

“I'll jostle _your_ organs,” Lopmon growled, then made an unpleasant gurgling noise.

 

Cameron laughed, and Andrew couldn't help but stare at him. He had a really nice laugh, all warm and soft, and it made his nose wrinkled up all cute. And he had such pretty hair, and these great blue eyes that caught hints of green in the sunlight...

 

Andrew groaned. This mission was a triple threat for him; not only was he afraid of what new and terrifying monster they were about to face _and_ fighting with Lopmon, he was also spending an extended amount of time alone with one of the two very cute boys on his team.

 

Andrew had figured out that he was attracted to boys at a very early age, but he'd never _done_ anything about it. His main flirting strategy was to stutter and blush a lot, make weird noises, and then run away and hope he never had to talk to the object of his affections again.

 

“You aren't getting sick too, are you?” Cameron asked.

 

“Don't worry, I'll be sure to vomit to one side or the other,” Andrew replied dryly, hiding his face behind Cameron's back and hoping he couldn't see the blood rushing to his face.

 

Garurumon came to a sudden halt, almost throwing his passengers clean off his back. Andrew's face slammed into Cameron's shoulders. Once the stars cleared from his eyes he reeled back, clutching his face and hoping his nose wasn't broken.

 

“Hey! _Warn_ us first, gawd,” Cameron complained, pushing himself back upright.

 

“Sorry,” Garurumon said quietly. “But I think I can smell the glitchmon.”

 

Cameron and Lopmon stiffened. Andrew sat up, inspecting his nose and thankfully finding no damage.

 

He _was_ starting to feel sick, but not from the ride. He _hated_ those corrupted nightmares; his skin was beginning to crawl just thinking of fighting one again.

 

“All of you, get off my back.” Garurumon crouched down. “It's coming for us.”

 

The three of them filed off his back, sticking close to his side. They stood there for a few moments, waiting in the tense silence.

 

Presently, it began to rain.

 

Finally, Cameron leaned over to whisper in Andrew's ear, “Do you see anything?”

 

Andrew turned to answer, but before he could, Garurumon stiffened, the thick fur rising on his body in clumps. A low, rich growl rolled out from his throat.

 

“It's here,” he murmured.

 

Andrew squinted up into the trees, and his heart stopped when he saw it. A crouched, misshapen figure perched up on a branch. It grimaced- or maybe grinned- either way, it showed far more jagged teeth than any one creature should possess.

 

“Well, it's not as big as the one we fought on the way to the temple,” Cameron said quietly. “Garurumon should be able to handle it.”

 

At that moment, the creature unfurled two short, sharp wings from it's back, and launched itself at them with a shrill cry.

 

 _Well, shit_ , thought Andrew.

 

~

 

Cameron had to throw himself to the side to avoid Garurumon's claws as he scrambled past him, dodging the glitchmon's sudden dive.

 

He pushed himself up on his elbows, wincing with pain. “Watch out!” he yelled to Garurumon, seeing the Glitchmon turn as it hit the peak of its flight and shoot back towards it's target.

 

Garurumon was prepared this time; he jumped, snapping at the creature, but his jaws missed it by inches as it shot away. He snarled in frustration. “ _Fox fire_!” The column of blue flames that erupted from his mouth ripped through through two layers of foliage, but the glitchmon wheeled up and away, unharmed.

 

“It's too fast,” Cameron murmured. He slipped trying to get up, and tasted blood as his jaw banged against the ground.

 

Andrew scrambled to his side and helped him stand up. “We should get out of the way,” he said, and pointed to a rocky overhang a few yards away. “We can take shelter there. Come on, Lopmon.”

 

“Andrew, I want to fight!” Lopmon protested.

 

“Fight that thing?! Don't kid yourself, it will _eat you!_ ”

 

They were so busy talking, they didn't notice the glitchmon swooping down on them until it let out a second high screech. Cameron jerked his head up to see a hungry maw approaching him at high speeds, and all he could do was give a scream of terror that wasn't even _remotely_ girly.

 

Garurumon jumped and latched onto the thing's tail. He shook his head and tossed it to the side, and it crashed to the ground, sending up a fountain of muddy water. Cameron ran for the overhang, Andrew following close behind, dragging Lopmon away by his ears.

 

“This is highly undignified!” Lopmon yelled. “Ow!”

 

“It's for your own good!” Andrew shouted back.

 

They crouched under the rocks as Garurumon and the glitchmon tore into each other. The rain got worse, coming down in thick sheets and making it a lot harder to see. Thunder rumbled in the distance, drowned out by snarls and screeches from the battlefield before them.

 

There was a horrible, pained howl, and suddenly the glitchmon spread it's wings and began flapping upwards, it's claws wrapped around Garurumon's throat. It screamed triumphantly as it carried it's prize skyward.

 

“GARURUMON! NO!” Cameron tried run forwards, but Andrew grabbed onto his arm.

 

About a mile up, Garurumon's dead weight seemed to prove too much for the glitchmon to keep a hold of, and he slipped from it's grasp. As he plummeted, his body limp, he was engulfed by a flash of light.

 

Cameron watched in horror as Gabumon fell to the forest floor.

 

~

“Let me go! I have to help Gabumon!” Lopmon tried to dart past him, but Andrew grabbed him by the ears again.

 

“No! Stop it, you _can't_ !” Andrew snarled. “ Wait, Cameron, don't- _shit_.”

 

While Andrew was distracted with his digimon, Cameron had ran out of their makeshift shelter, dashing out towards Gabumon. The glitchmon circled above, and Andrew expected it to dive again- but for some reason, it didn't.

 

It landed in a nearby tree and crouched there, vulture-like, swinging it's head back and forth. That's when the light switched on in Andrew's head- it couldn't see them.

 

It's eyes were just two tiny, shining pinpricks in it's face. Garurumon had been an obvious target, but one tiny human and his rookie level digimon crouching on the forest floor, in the rain and the growing darkness- it couldn't get a lock on them.

 

Andrew's shoulders relaxed; at least they were out of immediate danger.

 

“Come _on_ , we need to go help them!” Lopmon tugged uselessly on the hand restraining him.

 

“Not now!” Andrew insisted. “Cameron can bring Gabumon back to shelter, then we can-”

 

“Why won't you let me fight?!” Lopmon glared up at him. “That's what I'm _here_ for, that's why I'm your partner!”

 

“I never asked for this!” Andrew half-yelled. Lightning cracked the sky. “I don't want you to fight for me!”

 

Lopmon made a low noise of frustration. “Listen, we don't have time for this! I know you hate me, but if you don't let me go, we could all die!”

 

Andrew pulled back, shocked. “ _What_? I don't hate you!”

 

“You _don't_?” Lopmon laughed bitterly. “You've been against me ever since we met! You've done nothing but tell me how much you hate being my partner!”

 

Andrew stared at him for a long moment. “Lopmon… I-I don't hate you, I really don't.”

 

“Then why won't you let me fight for you?!” Lopmon raged. “I know you don't trust me, I know you think I- I'm weak, I'm pathetic, I'm useless, and you're _right_ , but you _have_ to let me do this for you! This is what I'm _for_ , it's all I'm good for!”

 

Eyes wide, Andrew knelt down in front of him. “Ok, hold on- I don't hate you, jeez! I'm so sorry I ever made you feel that way. I know I tearted you really badly when I first got here, but I certainly don't think you're worthless, or weak or anything like that!”

 

“Then- then why?” Tears were welling up in Lopmon's eyes, and he blinked them away furiously. “Why won't you let me fight?!”

 

“Because- god, Lopmon.” Andrew rubbed a hand over his forehead. “Because, well… I can't- I can't bear the thought of you getting hurt for my sake. You didn't want to be my partner, right? Then- then how could I possibly ask you to protect me? To- god, _die_ for me?”

 

Lopmon stared up at him, looking mad and scared and completely lost.

 

All of a sudden, Andrew felt a terribly soft, fond feeling well up inside of him. He reached out and very gently touched Lopmon's cheek. “Look- I don't know you hardly at all. And I didn't ask for this either. But I like you, ok? I don't want to see anything bad happen to you. You probably don't feel the same way, but I…I think of you as my friend.”

 

“Andrew...” Lopmon's ears drooped. For a moment, his expression was terribly vulnerable. Then, his eyes hardened. “Andrew, you've got to trust me.”

 

“But-” Andrew started, but Lopmon interrupted him.

 

“I won't die for you,” Lopmon said. “Because I am _not_ going to die. I'm going to protect you, and everyone I love. Do you understand?”

 

Andrew swallowed, and balled his hands into fists. His first instinct was to protest, to try and keep him out of harm's way… but if he'd really hurt Lopmon so much by doing that before- then maybe it was time to trust him. “...Ok.”

 

Lopmon turned, and Andrew stood up. In the clearing, Cameron was crouched over Gabumon, shaking his body and talking to him in a low, urgent voice. The glitchmon loomed above them, stretching it's wings and growling in frustration as it searched for them.

 

Lopmon looked over his shoulder at him. “Andrew- just trust me. Please.”

 

He clenched his teeth, reached into his pocket and drew out his digivice. “Lopmon- go. Protect them!”

 

As Lopmon ran forward, a flash of light engulfed his body. It doubled in size and then burst open, and all Andrew could see was a streak of purple and yellow heading towards the center of the clearing.

 

The streak jumped into the air and crashed into the trees where the glitchmon was lying in wait. There was an unholy screech and the trees rattled as it spread it's wings and lashed out, enraged- but Lopmon- Lopmon's's _champion_ form!- had already bounced away.

 

The Glitchmon lifted off and tried to dive-bomb it's opponent, but Lopmon's champion form was too quick, jumping against the cliffside and ricocheting back to deliver a devastating kick to the monster's head.

 

Andrew pointed his digivice towards the battle, trying to get a lock on his speedy digimon. Finally, an image appeared on the screen. _Turuiemon. Level: Champion. Type: Data._ The caption read, under a picture of a purple rabbit wearing a yellow martial-arts style outfit and holding cruel iron weapons in each hand.

 

Andrew couldn't contain a giddy laugh of delight. He looked _awesome_!

 

The rain was coming down so hard now that it was soaking him even as he stood under the shelter of the overhang, but he didn't care. He was entranced, watching his digimon partner beat the crap out of the grounded glitchmon, which was writhing in the mud, unable to avoid Turuiemon's attacks long enough to get airborn again.

 

Turuiemon leapt straight up into the air. “ _Gauntlet Claw!”_ he yelled, and came down hard on the Glitchmon.

 

There was a moment of stillness- then the Glitchmon exploded into a puff of sparks, and Turuiemon landed on his feet, perfectly balanced.

 

Andrew burst into applause. “WHOOO! Great job!”

 

He ran out from under his shelter to go congratulate his digimon partner properly. Turuiemon ran in his direction, and the two met in the middle of the field, rain still lashing down on them both.

 

“You were amazing!” Andrew shouted, waving his arms. His heart was still pounding from watching the battle.

 

Turuiemon laughed, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “Heh, well…”

 

“Wow, you're shorter than I expected, though.” Andrew only had to look up about a foot, rather than ten or fifteen like he had to with Greymon and Garurumon.

 

Turuiemon glared down at him. “I could say the same about you, you know.”

 

Andrew giggled. “Megan's right; we must have been made for each other,” he said fondly.

 

Their tended moment was broken by Cameron, who came running to tackle-hug Turuiemon. “THANK YOU FOR SAVING GABUMON!” he wailed, burying his face in the digimon's chest.

 

Turuiemon patted his head, looking bewildered and uncomfortable with the sudden attention. “Um, thanks? There, there.”

 

“Cameron, stop, you're embarrassing me,” Gabumon complained, trailing behind him. He looked soggy, and a little rough around the edges, but otherwise perfectly healthy.

 

Andrew eyed Turuiemon up for a second. _Should I… oh, why the heck not_. And he rushed forward to hug his digimon too.

 

Unfortunately, the combined weight of two humans was too much for him to handle, and all three of them ended up toppling over into the mud.

 

Andrew laughed, adrenaline and relief making him giddy. Cameron joined in, and reached over to grab Andrew in a one-armed hug and roughly rub his hair.

 

“Um, this is great guys, but- can you get off me?” said in a familiarly grouchy voice.

 

Andrew looked down to see that Turuiemon had de-evolved, and he and Cameron were sort of squishing Lopmon down into the mud. He didn't look happy about it.

 

“Sorry bud,” Andrew said hastily, and scrambling back up. He held out a hand, and helped Lopmon to his feet.

 

Cameron sneezed violently. “Um... maybe we should find someplace to get out of the rain.”

 

“Sounds like a good idea,” Andrew said.

 

“Let's look down the cliffside; there's probably a cave somewhere we can hole up in,” Gabumon said, rubbing his arms and shivering.

 

Before he stared to walk, Andrew looked down at Lopmon, The two stared at each other for a long, meaningful moment.

 

Then Andrew held out his arms. “You want me to carry you?”

 

“Screw you,” Lopmon said.

 

 _Back to normal then,_ Andrew thought, satisfied.

 

~

Megan had tried her best to keep them both busy, bless her. They'd played soccer for about two hours straight and she'd joked and chattered the entire time. But even Desoto could tell that underneath her cheerful attitude, she was incredibly stressed.

 

He was pretty sure she was doing it for his sake, and he honestly appreciated it. But he knew she was worried about her brother, and as the day dragged on, her unrelenting joviality started to wear thin. Eventually she went quiet.

 

After supper as the sky went dark, Agumon and Patamon were napping out in the garden while he and Megan cleaned up the kitchen. Presently, Megan was washing the same plate she'd picked up five minutes ago, staring off into the middle distance, and Desoto got the feeling she was thinking about her brother again.

 

He wished he could do something to make her feel better. She might act a little wild, but she tried really hard to take care of everyone and keep them working together as a team. She deserved to have people take support her as well.

 

But no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't find the right words to get her to stop worrying and relax. _It's probably for the best if I don't say anything… she probably just wants to mope for a while,_ he thought.

 

So he continued on, drying dish after dish without much care- until he noticed that her eyes had moved to him.

 

“What?” he asked nervously. “Do I have soap on my face?”

 

“Nope,” she said, still watching him. Her eyes looked curious. “So, I gotta ask. Did your parents actually _name_ you that?”

 

He bit his lip. This was getting perilously close to certain sensitive subjects. “Umm, actually Desoto is my surname,” he said quietly.

 

“Ohh,” she said, nodding slowly. “What's your first name?”

 

He choked up. For a moment, he legitimately couldn't answer the question. His grip tightened on the towel in his hands until they shook. “I- um, can we talk about something else?”

 

He expected her to get suspicious, to pry deeper, maybe even get mad- but to his shock, instead she drew back. “Oh- ok. Sorry dude.”

 

She turned back to her washing, easy as that. He started at her for a couple more seconds, then started drying again, tense.

 

He felt a soft touch on his arm and looked up, startled, to see that Megan's mouth was twisted up into a remorseful grimace. “Hey- I really am sorry, De. I'm a dumbass and I don't know how to keep my mouth shut; if I say something stupid, feel free to clock me.”

 

He couldn't help but giggle. “Well, I won't do _that_. And don't- don't call yourself that. You're not dumb.”

 

“Hey, I need to have _some_ flaws, or I'd just be too perfect to bear.” She flashed him another grin and bounced her eyebrows at him.

 

He snorted. They both returned to their work, but as he dried dish after dish, he started thinking hard.

 

Dangit, he really _liked_ Megan. She was nice enough to pretend she was happy just to make other people feel better. She never treated him like he was stupid or weak. And heck, she'd actually saved his life the first time they met.

 

He felt safe around her. He trusted her. And suddenly, he felt like he wanted her to know about his... whole deal. He was tired about not having anyone around him who knew, no one he could go to when he needed to talk about his issues. He was pretty sure Megan could be that person.

 

Besides, he was tired of walking on pins and needles, terrified that he'd get outed by accident. If these guys had to know, he wanted to tell them himself- and Megan was the safest person to start with.

 

He took in a deep breath. “Megan?”

 

“Yeah?” She looked up at him curiously.

 

His hands were shaking. He put down the dish and the towel. “Can I ask you something?”

 

“Sure.” She turned towards him a little, but stayed relaxed, her big brown eyes watching him without judgment.

 

“Do you know anything about- um- transgender people?” he blurted it out before he could tell himself not to.

 

She blinked at him a couple times. Then she looked at the ceiling and chewed on her lip, thinking. “Not like, a ton? I've read a few articles about them. One of the artists I like online is one. Why?”

 

He looked away; he couldn't handle watching her reaction while he spoke. “...How would you feel, um, hypothetically, if someone you knew told you they were- um, they were trans?”

 

She didn't immediately reply, and his breath started coming short. _Stupid, stupid! I shouldn't have said anything, now was a bad time, why couldn't I have just-_

 

“If someone I knew told me that,” she said quietly, “I would feel very honored that they trusted me enough to confide in me. And I would want them to know that I love them very much and I want them to be happy.”

 

Heat rushed through him. He clapped a hand to his mouth to keep from making any undignified sounds, and tears started welling up in his eyes.

 

“De? Oh shit, no! Don't cry!” Megan put her hands on his shoulders. “Are those happy tears or sad tears? Did I say something terribly wrong? I'm serious about the punching thing, do you want to punch me?”

 

He let out a strangled coughing noise, and even he wasn't sure if it was a laugh or a sob. “N-I'm just- thank you,” he murmured, trying to keep control of his voice, trying not to cry, trying not to tremble-

 

She hugged him, and that was it, he was gone. He cried into her hair, and it was super embarrassing, but also kind of a relief. It didn't last too long, thankfully; it was like a short summer storm, and they broke apart, both smiling awkwardly.

 

“Sorry about that,” he muttered, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “It's been a while since I've told anyone, and I just… I was kinda scared.”

 

“Aww, hon.” she looked up at him with sympathy and took his hand in hers, rubbing his wrist gently. “Don't be sorry, I get it. Please don't be scared, I'm here for you.”

 

He rubbed his eyes. “So, yeah… about the name thing-”

 

“You don't gotta talk about it,” she said immediately. “If it's sensitive-”

 

“No, no- I want to.” Now that he knew she wasn't going to freak out- honestly, it was a real relief to have someone here who would understand. “My birth name- well, it was a girl's name.”

 

Megan frowned, then blinked. Then her eyes shot wide. “Ohhhh, I thought- I thought you meant you wanted to _be_ a girl. Not-”

 

“Oh, no!” Desoto laughed, waving his hand. “Hell no! Sorry, excuse my language. No, it was- um, the other way.”

 

Megan giggled. “Sorry.”

 

Desoto smiled, emboldened by her cheerful, easy correction of her own mistake. “When I was a kid… before I even knew I _was_ a boy, well… I knew I was different. And I hated my birth name. So I made everyone at school call me Desoto. And my parents thought it was funny, so it kinda stuck. And then I transitioned, and, well. It made a lot of sense.”

 

“Wow.” Megan leaned back against the counter, the curiosity back in her eyes. “So, your parents are cool with it?”

 

“They are now. It took them a while to understand.” Desoto smiled softly. “But they love me a lot.” And he had a good child therapist who had helped convince them to let him transition. But the love helped too.

 

“So what _is_ your boy name?” Megan asked.

 

Desoto shrugged. “I haven't thought of one yet. I'm still looking.”

 

A big smile spread across Megan's face. “Oh my god, when you figure it out we should throw a huge party for you! It'll be like your new birthday!”

 

The idea touched him, it really did. But he frowned as a new concern popped into his head. “Megan- I just- I don't want anyone else to know yet, ok? So please… don't tell the others, will you? I wanna do that on my own terms.”

 

Megan stepped forward and took his hands, he face suddenly very serious. “I promise, De. I'll never tell anyone until you're ready, ok? But just for the record, I'm _sure_ Andrew won't care. And I bet Cameron won't either. And even if they did,” she grinned fiercely, “I'd convince them to respect you. With my fists.”

 

Desoto laughed helplessly. “I'll hold you to that,” he said, then on impulse he hugged her again. “Thank you. Seriously.”

 

“It's no big deal,” she said, and kissed him gently on the cheek. “We're friends, ok? I'll stick up for you, no matter what.”

 

Desoto closed his eyes, grateful.  
  
~

 

“Well, this is cozy,” Cameron said.

 

“I'm glad Megan thought to pack us a blanket,” Andrew agreed.

 

“I kind of wish she'd thought to give us more than one, though,” Cameron said.

 

“Stop complaining, we're warm, aren't we?” Lopmon said.

 

Gabumon snored lightly, already asleep.

 

After the battle, they had found a cave higher up on the mountain to take refuge in for the night. The four of them were now curled up together in a large blanket next to the ashy remains of a fire.

 

Lopmon snuggled deeper into the blanket. He wasn't exactly thrilled about being forced into close quarters with these knuckleheads, but it was warm and comfy so he could hardly complain.

 

“You guys were so cool,” Cameron said quietly. “Lopmon, you took that thing out like it was _nothing_.”

 

Lopmon scoffed. “We could have been much more impressive if you hadn't wasted so much time worrying,” he told Andrew sharply.

 

Andrew shrugged. “Worrying- that's kind of just what I _do_. Why should I give it up when I'm so good at it?”

 

Lopmon rolled his eyes. “Ok, it's obviously no use arguing with you,” he grumbled.

 

After a minute, Andrew reached over to pat his head. “I'm really proud of you.”

 

Lopmon groaned and shoved him away, trying not to show how pleased he was to hear those words- because he really was.

 

He felt so strange after the battle. Evolution had been just as glorious as he knew it would be, and he definitely felt smug for finally getting Andrew to play his part as a Chosen Child, but also… every time he thought about how Andrew had knelt down in front of him and earnestly told him that he cared about Lopmon, he thought of Lopmon as his _friend…_ Lopmon's throat got tight.

 

It was a terribly vulnerable feeling, and he hoped it would clear out soon, like an unwanted head-cold.

 

He closed his eyes and stubbornly tried to go to sleep. And when Andrew's hand drifted across his cheek, he was too far-gone to keep himself from nuzzling up into the touch

 

~

 

After supper, Desoto had seemed a lot happier for some reason. Patamon didn't know exactly what they'd missed, but they thought De had likely had some kind a talk with Megan while they were out playing with Agumon.

 

Whatever it was, they were pleased for him. But settled down on his stomach, Megan curled up next to them on the enormous bed and the lights turned down low, they couldn't sleep for the life of them.

 

He was worried about Gabumon and Lopmon and their humans, even though they knew it was useless. Vega had said this mission could take a few days, so it was perfectly understandable that they weren't back yet.

 

But that did very little to ease the anxious knot in Patamon's stomach. They wished so badly they could have gone along too; if they'd gone, they could make sure everyone was ok, they could-!

 

 _You could do what?_ They thought bitterly. _You can't evolve. You can hardly fight. You can't do anything. You're better off staying at home and not bothering anyone…_

 

They shivered and shifted on Desoto's chest, feeling sick and small. If only they could evolve….

 

“Patamon?”

 

They looked up sharply at their partner, who was watching them with concern. Patamon's first instinct was to tell him to go back to sleep- but, no, they should probably talk about this before it got worse.

“De, can we talk?” they whispered.

 

Desoto shot a glance over at Megan and Agumon, who were sleeping in a pile, sawing logs together. Then he jerked his chin towards the door. “Let's go out.”

 

They went into the hallway outside the bedroom, and Desoto sat down next to the door, shifting Patamon into his lap. “What's wrong?” he asked.

 

“I... feel really bad that I haven't evolved for you, yet,” Patamon said. The guilt had been weighing heavily on him ever since he'd failed to protect his partner from the glitchmon on the mountain trail.

 

“Oh- you don't have to worry about that! Andrew and Lopmon are having trouble too- it must be a pretty common thing.” Desoto rubbed the back of his neck. “It's probably my fault- Vega said we have to be all determined and stuff, and I don't-”

 

“No, it's not your fault!” Patamon stood up, putting their front feet on his chest. “You trust me- you have ever since we met each other. That's all I need from you to evolve, and you- you're perfect.”

 

Desoto stared at him, wide-eyed. “What- really?”

 

“It's all my fault,” Patamon said gloomy. “I don't know why, but every time I've tried to evolve and protect you, I just can't. I... I think I'm afraid.”

 

“Afraid of evolution?” Desoto's face softened with understanding.

 

Patamon nodded. “I don't know why. I just- whenever I even think of evolving, it scares me right down to my bones.”

 

It had happened when they met the first glitchmon; it had happened again at the village. They'd frozen right up, terrified. All they could do was run.

 

It was shameful, it was- it was _wrong_ _._ It felt like there was something terribly askew inside of them, some kind of barrier they couldn't get past to find the energy to evolve.

 

“Oh,” Desoto murmured.

 

Patamon's wings drooped. “I'm sorry, De. I just want to protect you...”

 

Desoto smiled and wrapped his arms around his digimon partner. “Don't worry about it, ok? If you don't want to evolve, you don't have to. I wouldn't dream of trying to force you, not if it makes you afraid.”

 

Patamon sighed. “I- I guess... if you say so.”

 

That wasn't really what they wanted… but honestly, they were just relieved that Desoto wasn't mad at them.

 

He was a good partner.

 

The two of them sat there for a long time. Patamon didn't even realize he'd fallen asleep until he felt Desoto being shaken vigorously.

 

“Guh? What's the rush?” he muttered sleepily, uncrossing his legs and rubbing his eyes

 

Patamon yawned widely and got to their feet. They looked up to see Megan beaming down at them. “They're back!” she said. “I saw Garurumon coming up the mountain.”

 

He stared up at her for a moment- then he leapt to his feet, knocking Patamon clear out of his lap. “Oops, sorry!”

 

Patamon was already in the air again, flapping hard in excitement.. “Come on, let's go welcome them home!”

 

Desoto and Megan beamed at each other, then raced off, following Patamon through the temple to great their friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, I just wanted to let you know that I'm taking April off to get a reasonable buffer in place. (Right now I'm rushing to finish each individual chapter before I need to post it, which is rather stressful.) 
> 
> God willing and the creek don't rise, I'll be able to come back and start updating twice a week. Look forward to it!
> 
> EDIT-  
> I made some changes to De's coming out scene. I went back to read it and was concerned to realize that the wording I used kinda made it seem that Desoto feels like he's lying to his friends by not telling them that he's trans, and that's... I don't THINK that's what I intended with his character.
> 
> (And if it was, well, I've changed my intentions by now. :P)
> 
> I wanna make it clear, he doesn't want Megan to know because he feels guilty or like he's not being honest with her. It's because he's used to being surrounded by people who know he's trans, accept him for it, and have his back, and he wants to have that kind of a relationship with Megan. 
> 
> I totally understand LGBTA folks who have guilt or shame over being closeted, but NO ONE is obligated to out themselves. Obviously outing yourself can be dangerous depending on the people and situation, but like, even if you think it would be safe, you can just not WANT to. It's no one else's business, and you're not lying to them or betraying them by not telling them extremely personal details about yourself.


	8. Episode 8- Raising the Stakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings for past emotional and physical child abuse, a character experiencing intense flashbacks, and children getting in fistfights with each other.

Eleena knelt down, breathing heavily. Next to her, Impmon was leaning against a boulder for support as it did the same.

  


She had long since lost any sense of passing time. The exhaustion and aching muscles from their constant running, climbing and fighting had blurred together into one long drag of pain and fatigue.  She wasn't sure if everything she'd gone through had made her stronger, or if it was just killing her slowly. She felt like she'd been stripped raw, her nerves left exposed. 

  


But something had changed. As she and Impmon had fought side by side, they had developed a strange camaraderie. They didn't _trust_ each other, per say, but they relied on each other enough to make it through obstacles that neither of them could have gotten through alone.

 

She would never admit it out loud, but she was sort of glad Impmon was there. 

  


Eleena stood up. “Let's keep going,” she said shortly, wiping the sweat from her face.

  


“Wait,” Impmon said. “The mist is clearing; do you see that light ahead?”

  


Eleena squinted into the fog; sure enough, far ahead of them- no, _above_ them; as the mist cleared it revealed a steep rocky path rising into the air\- there was a pulsing green light which scattered in the fog, surrounding them in a strange, smoky green haze. 

  


Hope sprung awake in her chest, so violently it almost knocked her over. That light had to mean something; maybe they were near the end of the Glitch's test!

 

“Come on, I'll race you!” She called to Impmon, feeling unusually playful, then took off towards the path.

  


“Eleena, wait!” it yelled back at her, but she was already scrambling up towards the light.

  


After all the climbing she'd done recently, it was easy to climb up the rough-hewn steps. It took her maybe three minutes to reach the top, and when she pulled herself onto the mesa, she stared wide-eyed at the view before her. “Whoah,” she murmured.

  


Suspended in the air a few feet above the rocky plateau, was a huge green crystal. The green light pouring out from it throbbed in a rhythm like a beating heart, sending flickering green patterns across her skin.

 

She scrambled all the way up and approached it slowly, almost hypnotized by the pulsing light. She was so focused she didn't notice the fog forming into solid shapes around her.

  


Claws raked through her hair, over her arms, her face, her stomach and chest. She shrieked and fell back, raising her arms against the sudden cloud of phantoms that had materialized around her. 

  


She'd been too careless in her joy; now she was going to pay for it. _Stiupid, stupid,_ stupid! She admonished herself as the phantoms descended on her.

  


In hindsight, she couldn't remember why she had called out. Later, she would deny that she even had,  and if anyone had questioned her; well, she would have blamed it on the fear and pain of the phantom's rending talons . 

 

Whatever her reasons, as she cowered on the ground, her arms covering up her face, a single word left her mouth in an awful, panicked scream; “IMPMON!”

 

And seconds later, it was answered. 

  


“ _ Razor wing!” _

  


Something ripped through the horde of phantoms, stirring a gust of wind across the plateau. Eleena's head was still tucked up tight against her chest, so she couldn't see what was attacking them. She could, however, hear the sound of the remaining phantoms being torn apart.

  


“ _ Death claw!”  _ There was a slicing noise, and a series of horrible screams- and then everything went eerily silent.

  


For several seconds, Eleena lay still, her heart beating fast. She took quick mental stock of her situation; She was probably bleeding, and definitely bruised all to hell, but her life no longer seemed to be in immediate danger. 

 

So she sat up, wiping her eyes and mouth on her arm, and looked up to see… well, it basically looked like the devil standing in front of her.

 

It was an inhumanly tall figure, black with a red, batlike symbol on it's chest. It had two huge, tattered, leathery wings coming from its shoulders and two large curving horns curving up from it's forehead. 

 

It stared down at her, and instead of an expression of anger or bloodlust, it seemed… a little shell-shocked, honestly. 

 

She swallowed, and stood up to her full height.  “ Well?” she  demanded . “You gonna kill me?”  her voice broke a little on her own fear, but it rang out loudly  enough  across the plateau.

  


All at once, the creature dissolved into light. The glow slowly dissipated and shrunk, finally disappearing entirely to show Impmon standing in the devil's place. It fell to it's knees with a grunt.

  


Eleena  frowned in confusion.

  


Impmon got to it's hands and knees, grinning fiercely. “Hah, I did it- I actually did it! I can't believe I actually evolved!”

  


Eleen walked over to it, ignoring the aches and pains from the phantom's attack. She nudged Impmon with the toe of her sneaker “Ok, what _was_ that?!”

  


Impmon bounced up  onto it's feet, suddenly energized “ _ That _ ,  human, was  Devimon. That's my champion form! I can't remember ever reaching Champion form before!”

  


“I don't understand,” Eleena said, bemused. 

  


“I evolved! I finally evolved!” Impmon danced around her feet happily. “Wasn't I awesome?”

  


She shrugged. “I suppose.”

  


“Oh come on- I totally saved your butt!” Impmon pointed at her. She'd never seen it look so thrilled before.

  


Eleena huffed, but it was true. If it hadn't been for Impmon- for _whatever_ it was it had done there- well... things might have ended much worse for her. “Well, let's just hope you can manage it again the next time I need you to fight for me.”

 

“As if I evolved for  _ your _ sake,” Impmon groused, sticking it's tongue out at her, but it didn't stop looking ecstatic.

  


Their moment was interrupted as the space around them went dark. The crystal floating above them disappeared, leaving Eleena to wonder exactly what it had been. Seconds later, they were standing back in the Escher-world she'd arrived in.

  


“ _** You have done well, ** _ ”  the Glitch's voice boomed around them.  “ _** I did not expect you to achieve so much in such a short amount of time. ** _

  


Eleena staggered back, off balance from the sudden change of scenery. “...Thank you,” she said, wary. 

  


“Well, you should have had higher expectations of us,” Impmon said, puffing it's chest out with pride.

  


“Don't get cocky,” Eleena mumbled.

  


“ _** You are ready for your  ** _ _** first ** _ _** task, ** _ ”  The Voice said.  “ _** I have an incredibly important mission for you.” ** _

  


A squareish screen opened up out of thin air in front of them. It showed a broad river, heavily forested on either bank. (After so much chaos, Eleena found that it was a relief to look at a landscape that actually make geometric sense for once.)

  


She was surprised to see humans walking along the bank; four kids of varying age and height. Each of them was accompanied by their own digimon.

  


“ _** These are known as The Chosen Children,”  ** _ The Glitch said. _** “ ** _ _** They are  ** _ _** agents of an evil spirit known as Vega. You must find and eliminate them.” ** _

  


Eleena's stomach tightened. “But- they're human, like me. I can't-”

  


“ _** Really? This loyalty to your own wretched species remains, even after all it's done to you?” ** _

  


Suddenly , her head was filled with a  stream of images;  her stepfather screaming in her face, hauling his fist back ;  a group of boys chasing her down a hallway, cornering her by the lockers, beating her with their backpacks; her own  _ mother _ -

  


She started screaming. “STOP IT!” she yelled, shaking her head back and forth, covering her eyes like it would block the images out. 

 

(It didn't.)

  


“ _** Those children aren't any different than the ones who tormented you. Why is destroying them any different than the fantasies I've seen in your own mind?” ** _

  


The images faded, and Eleena gritted her teeth. Her whole body was trembling, rage and fear thrumming inside of her, barely contained. “These kids haven't _done_ anything to me.”

  


“ _** It's only a matter of time.” ** _

  


Eleena felt sick. This wasn't what she'd asked for- this wasn't what she wanted.

  


Was it?

  


“Give me time to think,” she said finally.

  


“ _** As you wish,”  ** _ the voice said.  “ _** But I already know what your answer will be.” ** _

  


She stormed off, trying to hold back her tears.

  
  


~

  


Desoto though it had been about two weeks since he'd arrived in the Digital World, maybe more. He'd sorta lost track of time. 

  


In that time, the four chosen children and their digimon had grown closer than ever. They slept together, ate together, played together, and ever since Megan had put her foot down, they were never split up for missions any more.

  


Desoto had friends again, and it was good .  _ They _ were good.

 

Cameron was like the big brother he'd never had, always helping him out and teaching him how to do stuff. Andrew had warmed up considerably since he figured stuff out with Turuiemon, and he seemed to like making Desoto laugh. And he could talk to Megan about anything and everything.

 

And Patamon- well, that was an even closer, more special kind of bond. Desoto didn't think they'd been apart for more than five minutes at a time since they'd found each other.  It felt like they'd been separated at birth or something.

  


It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows; he missed his family. A lot. He thought about them every day, wondering what they were doing, hoping they weren't too worried about him. It hurt to be apart from them for so long.

  


But his new friends kept him from feeling too lonely. And besides, fighting glitchmon left him far too busy to keep moping.

  


Well…  'fighting' was kind of a stretch. Patamon still hadn't been able to evolve, so the two of them mostly hung back during battles. Megan had taken the initiative to put them in charge of luggage during trips, so at least they had something useful to do.

  


Desoto was determined to keep his promise and not push Patamon into evolving if they weren't ready for it. He tried his best to cheer them up when they looked glum after fights, but sometimes he still caught them looking despondant.

 

It frustrated him. If only he could do more to help… but he got the feeling that it was best not to push the issue. 

  


Presently, they were a few days out from the temple. They had just finished their mission, (destroying a snakelike glitchmon that lived in a nearby lake,) and were sticking around this nice river valley to rest overnight before they made the trip back home.

  


Right now they were setting up camp for the night. Andrew was starting the fire while Cameron and Megan bickered over how to pitch the tent. Their digimon were asleep in a pile on the ground, tuckered out after a difficult battle.

  


Patamon was dozing on Desoto's shoulder as he rummaged through their bags. He pulled out their large blue kettle. “I'm gonna get us some water, ok?” he told the camp at large.

  


“Thanks!” Megan called over to him.

  


“Don't fall in,” Cameron gave him a wink.

  


“I won't!” Desoto shot them a brief wave and then started walking down towards the river, whistling cheerfully.

 

It was peaceful by the river.  The evening light played beautifully over the water, and Desoto just stood there for a little while and watched it flow. Patamon touched down by his feet and started lapping directly from the river. 

 

Desoto winced dramatically. “It goes against all my instincts to let you do that,” he said.

 

Patamon looked up at him with wide eyes. “Why?”

 

“Because the rivers back home aren't clean. You'd get sick if you drank from them.” Desoto crouched down and dipped the kettle into the water. “And they smell like rotting fish, and they're full of trash.”

 

Patamon's ear-wing's went back in alarm. “But if the rivers are like that, what do you drink?”

 

“We have to purify it first,” Desoto explained. “Or we buy water from where it's cleaner and have it shipped in.”

 

“The human world sounds… very strange,” Patamon said.

 

“Yeah, it kind of is.” Desoto pulled the kettle back up and took an experimental sip from the rim. The water was pure and almost sweet. “But I wasn't in danger for my life multiple times a day when I lived there.”

 

Patamon laughed. “Well, it just goes to show that- De, look out!”

 

Desoto spun around and ducked just in time to avoid a fireball that went whizzing over his head. He scraped his knees falling to the ground and sloshed water all over himself. “What the heck?!”

  


“There's something out there,” Patamon said. They landed on Desoto's head, their fur bristling.

  


Sure enough, a few seconds later a little blue digimon jumped out of the bushes. It scowled up at the two of them, it's arms crossed. “Hold still please, that was supposed to burn your face off.”

  


“I like my face where it is, thank you!” Desoto said. 

  


He watched, confused and nervous as a tall, pale girl with long blonde hair spilling down her back walked out from behind a tree. She glared down at the little blue digimon. “Impmon, stop screwing around and finish the job.”  
  


“Hey, wair!” Desoto scrambled to his feet. “...Are you another Chosen Child?”

  


The girl didn't answer, or even look him in the eyes. Instead, she just raised her hand.

  


On her silent command, Impmon leapt towards Desoto. Patamon flew in to intercept it with a body-check, knocking it out of the air. “Stop it!” they cried shrilly.

  


Impmon landed on it's feet and sprang up towards Desoto like a homing missile. He threw his arms over his face, flinching instinctively away from the attack.

  


“ _ Boom Bubble! _ ”  there was a loud crash , and  he looked up to see  Impmon hanging upside down in a tree, looking dazed.

  


“Ugh, we don't have _time_ for this,” the girl growled, irritably flipping her hair back behind her shoulders.

  


“Why are you fighting me?!” Desoto threw his arms up in frustration. “You're a Chosen Child, aren't you? We're on the same side!”

  


“I don't care about anything like that,” the girl said shortly. “I'm supposed to kill you.”

  


Desoto's heart skipped a beat. “Why?!”

  


“Look, I don't have the patience for this,” the girl said. “Impmon, evolve.”

  


“What?” The little blue digimon had just finished climbing down the tree. “You said we were supposed to be stealthy!”

  


“Screw stealth, fighting in that form is pointless.” The girl reached into her pocket. She pulled out what Desoto initially thought was a digivice- but after staring at it for a few seconds,  he realized that it looked… _wrong_ somehow.

  


Impmon began to glow, and hey- Desoto may not have been the sharpest crayon in the box, but he knew when it was time to start running. He snatched Patamon out of midair, tucked them under his arm like a football, and headed for the hills.

  


“Hey, come back here and fight!” The girl yelled. “Coward!”

  


“I don't _want_ to fight!” he shouted back over his shoulder.

  


“Sh-should I try to evolve?” Patamon asked as they ran.

  


“No!” Desoto suddenly found himself furious. What did that girl think she was doing?! “A fight is what she wants, and we're not going to give her the satisfaction of-”” he was cut off as an enormous dark shape descended from the sky and crashed down in front of him.

  


The towering, devil-like digimon spread its wings and gave them an evil grin. It started reaching down for them, and all Desoto could do was stare in horror as its hand descended. 

  


“ _ Fox fire!” _

  


“ _ Nova blast!” _

  


The Digimon howled as it was attacked from either side, blue and orange fire sweeping up opposite sides of its body. The flames had hardly even dissipated when Turuiemon came flying up to sock it in the face. It's head snapped back and it fell over with a mighty, ground-shaking crash.

  


Desoto almost suffered a similar fate as a small body plowed into his side. Megan grabbed him by the face, staring up at him in concern. “Oh my god, are you guys ok?!”

  


“We're fine, Megan.” Desoto said, flustered by her sudden appearance. He could see the others standing nearby, cheering their digimon on.

 

“Why is that thing attacking you?!” Megan gestured to the tall devil-digimon that was currently struggling to it's feet, looking royally ticked off.

 

“Well, um-” Desoto pushed his hair out of his eyes, trying to think. “There was this girl, with a digivice- or, something-

 

“ What, another kid?”  Megan frowned. “Like- another Chosen Child?”

  


“ Yeah! But all she wanted was to figh t me.” Desoto bit his lip. “ S he said-  she said she wanted to  _ kill _ me!”

  


Megan's expression changed so abruptly it was like a set of steel shutters had closed behind her eyes. For a second, Desoto was scared he'd done something wrong and she was mad at him- but the next words out of her mouth proved that wrong. “Oh, she is going  _ down,”  _ she growled.

 

“Y-you're not gonna try and fight her, are you?” Desoto asked, nervous.

 

Megan grabbed his face again. “Desoto, if she tried to harm a hair on your sweet, precious little head, I am going to  _ tear her to pieces and feed her to wild deer.  _ Now, where is she? I crave blood.”

 

Desoto stepped back, staring down at Megan with unfiltered terror. All of a sudden, he felt incredibly grateful that  he was on her good side.

  


~

  


“ Ok, where  are you ?” Megan  folded her arms and stalked around in a circle, completely ignoring the epic battle going down behind her. “ YOU CAN'T HIDE FOREVER, COWARD!”

 

“Megannn!” Desoto grabbed onto her shoulders. “Don't antagonize her!”

 

She shrugged him off. “ COME OUT AND PLAY!” she yelled, cupping her hands around her mouth. 

 

Andrew and Cameron started talking to Desoto, asking him what had happened, and Megan was happy to let them distract him. All she wanted to focus on was finding the she-devil that had hurt one of  _ her boys _ and  _ DESTROYING. HER. _

  


It didn't take long for her to come out of hiding. She emerged from the underbrush like a hunting tiger, her amber eyes tracking coldly across the Chosen Children. Her waist-length blonde hair swung freely around her face, which was head and shoulders above Megan's.

  


The strange girl glowered down at Megan, who swallowed, intimidated and- if she was being  _ entirely _ honest with herself- more than a little impressed. 

  


_ Oh no, she's hot _ , she thought, distractedly- then shook her head violently.  _ Focus! She threatened Desoto, I can't flirt with her! _

  


The girl crossed her arms and lifted an eyebrow. “Wow, your digimon are even more pathetic than I thought they would be,” she said, utterly deadpan. “Look, it's three on one and they're hardly even scratching Devimon.”

  


She was right; Megan could hear the devil-digimon laughing in the background, over a cacophany of shrieks and squeals from Greymon and Garurumon. She gritted her teeth. “What the hell are you doing?!” she growled. “Call your digimon off right now!”

  


“I'm sure that one has explained my intentions to you,” the girl gestured towards Desoto. “By the way, what's wrong with his digimon? Why hasn't it evolved?”

  


“What's wrong with _you_ for attacking a bunch of kids you've never even met?!” Megan demanded.

  


“Because it's the only way for me to become strong,” she said simply, her eyes narrowing.

  


Megan threw her arms up in frustration. “That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard!”

 

“I don't have time to argue,” the girl growled. “Devimon! Quit fooling around and finish them off!”

  


They both jumped as Turuiemon crashed to the ground near them, cursing. He got to his feet, dusted himself off briefly, then jumped back into the fray.

  


Megan turned back to the girl.  “ Call your digimon off  _ right now,”  _ s he said, making her voice as low and stern as she could manage. _ “ _ We don't want to hurt him, but we  absolutely  will if we have to.”

  


“Yeah, back off!” Cameron said, coming up to stand by Megan. Desoto and Andrew followed him a few paces behind, looking much less confident than he did. 

  


The girl  sneered at them. “No. I am going to tear your digimon apart piece by piece, and you are going to be  _ absolutely helpless  _ to stop me.”

  


Megan reached the end of her patience. “Ok, that's it!” she yelled, and ran forward to tackle the girl right in the stomach.  She could hear Andrew yelling from behind her as they fell to the forest floor in a tangled heap, but she was a little too distracted to listen.

  


Megan had taken martial arts since she was four years old. She was small, but she knew how to kick butt. However, the blonde girl had a good height advantage and a real scrappy determination to her, so they were pretty evenly matched.

  


She got a handful of Megan's hair and pulled viciously. Megan snarled in pain and anger, and squirmed around to bite her arm, hard. 

 

Biting into someone and refusing to let go generally made them panic. But this girl obviously wasn't that easily flustered; instead she went stiff, and then jabbed her fingers into either side of Megan's ribs, tickling her mercilessly.

  


She came up from the bite, laughing helplessly despite herself, and the girl pulled back and socked her right in the jaw. From the sound she made, it hurt her more than it hurt Megan.

  


“ Oh god, stop it! ” Desoto  yelled at them, frantic. “Please don't fight!”

  


“No way, I'm having too much fun!” Megan crowed back at him, shoving her knee into the girl's groin. 

 

She grunted in pain, and retaliated by grabbing her left arm in both hands and twisting it back at a very unnatural angle.

 

Pain shot up Megan's shoulder, and she started screaming.  “AAAAH! OW OW OW, NEVER MIND!  SOMEONE HELP! ”

  


“ _Get off me or I'll break it!”_ the girl snarled, twisting her arm viciously- but she didn't have time to carry out the threat, as Cameron, who Megan hadn't even noticed sneaking up around them, put his arm around her throat and hauled her back.

  


Megan sighed in profound relief as her arm returned to a more natural position. She staggered to her feet to survey the aftermath.

 

Cameron had the girl in a pretty solid choke hold but she refused to stay still, flailing and snarling, scratching Cameron's arms. “ _Let me GO!”_ she spat.

  


Cameron shook his head, his eyes wide and alarmed but his arms staying firmly in position. “Not until you call off your digimon!”

  


This seemed to catch the attention of her digimon. “Eleena!” Devimon shouted, distracted from his own fight.

 

Greymon took this opportunity to latch onto his throat, kicking and scratching furiously.  Greymon bit into his arm, and Turuiemon bounced up to hit him solidly in the stomach. He let out a squeal of pain, doubling up, and then disappeared in a flash of light.

  


A much smaller digimon hit the ground, panting and trembling. The other three digimon circled around him, and his ears drooped as he realized he'd lost the fight.

 

Megan rubbed absently at her aching arm. “Ok, you can let her go, Cammie.”

 

Cameron raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure? She's still acting like a rabid raccoon.”

 

In answer, the girl let out a stream of words she definitely hadn't learned from any family-friendly programming, kicking and scrabbling to try and get free.

 

“I'll deal with her,” Megan promised.

  


Cameron looked skeptical, but he let her go anyway. She coughed a few times as, she pushed herself to her feet, sticking her chin up like she was trying to preserve her dignity.

  


The rookie digimon crawled up to her, keeping an eye on the champions as he got away from them, like they might change their mind about letting him live. “Mas- Eleena... I'm so sorry. I couldn't- I wasn't strong enough to-”

  


Her mouth twisted. “Save it,” she growled shortly. Then she whipped her head around and glared at Megan. “You-”

  


Megan stepped forward, and stuck her hand out. “Look- I feel like we got off on the wrong foot. Do you- um- want to sit down with us and have something to eat, maybe?” 

  


The girl- Eleena, her digimon had called her- stared at her like she had just turned into a fish.

 

Megan stuck her hand out further and grinned. “It's ok, I won't bite!”

 

Eleena watched her, scowling and confused, for a few more seconds.  Then she grabbed her poor little digimon by the ear, and dragged it away, storming off into the forest. 

 

She looked less like a powerful tiger  as she retreated , and more like a n embar r assed cat that had fallen off it's perch in front of everyone.

  


Megan stared after her. “Well... ok... what the hell was that?”

 

“You're asking _us_ _?”_ Cameron asked dryly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well looky here, I survived April and came back with my twice-a-week episode promise! Let's hope I can stick to it for the rest of the fic. X3
> 
> Desoto's speech about Earth's water is directly related to my own memories of the river near my childhood home. Pretty, but I would not drink out of it to save my life and it smelled SO. BAD.
> 
> And yes, you are supposed to read Megan yelling "COME OUT AND PLAY" in Griffin Mcelroy's voice.


	9. Episode 9- Desperate Measures

“Ah, ow, ow!” Megan winced away from the antiseptic cream Andrew was trying to put on her cheek. “It stings.”

  


Andrew scowled at her. “You just fought a six-foot-tall Amazonian she-devil with your bare hands, and _this_ is what you complain about? You're an even bigger baby than I am.”

  


“She wasn't six feet tall, stop exaggerating.” Megan whimpered as he smoothed a bandage over the cut he'd been tending to. “And I'm not high on adrenaline anymore.”

  


Andrew rolled his eyes.

  


The fight with Devimon had torn a ragged clearing into the forest; even from their camp Andrew could see the trees he'd broken as he brawled with their digimon.

  


Desoto was  still upset. He seemed to think that the fight had been his fault somehow, and Cameron was sitting with him and talking with him quietly, trying to convince him to calm down.  Andrew had never seen him get so hysterical before.

  


He smoothed one last bandage over Megan's temple.  “ Ok, I think that's the worst of it,”  he said, letting go of  her. “Do you want a lollipop for being a good girl?”

  


“Don't patronize me.” Megan stood up and stretched widely, wincing as she overextended her hurt arm. “Who _was_ she, anyway?”

  


Andrew shrugged, and turned to Lopmon. “Did you recognize that digimon?”

  


“Devimon is just a regular champion-level.” Lopmon shrugged. “What were they even trying to do? Three on one is terrible odds, and she didn't even know that Patamon can't evolve.” 

  


“I suppose we'd better tell Vega about her when we get back,” Andrew said. “If she _is_ a chosen child, he should know something about her.”

  


“If he deigns to tell us, of course,” Megan grumbled.

 

Andrew fixed her with a sharp look. “So you've noticed that he's definitely keeping stuff from us?”

 

She raised her eyebrows at him. “I'm not as naive as you seem to think.”

  


He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Sorry. I just… I figured you guys thought I was being paranoid.”

  


“I think it's very sensible not to automatically trust the first person we come across who tries to tell us what to do,” Megan said. “And you've always been more cautious than me. It's a good thing; you keep me in check.

  


Knowing his sister didn't blindly trust Vega was a relief. “But, well… he's still our best resource for information,” he begrudgingly admitted. 

  


“It won't hurt us to just ask him,” Megan said reasonably. “Come on, let's go tear up camp and head back.”

  


“Uh, _we'll_ handle teardown,” Andrew said, grabbing his sister before she could head over to the tents and steering her off towards a large rock. “ _You_ can sit down and rest your friggin' arm.”

  


“Spoilsport.” Megan stuck her tongue out at him, but sat down without complaint.

  


~

  


Eleena had never been more humiliated in her life- and she'd had plenty of humiliating experiences already, so that was saying something.

  


She couldn't believe she'd let them gang up on her like that. And she couldn't _believe_ that Impmon had put on such a pathetic display.

  


It was walking besides her, wringing its hands and stealing nervous little glances up at her like a kicked puppy. It was driving her crazy; she wanted to grab it and shake it, yell in it's face, do _something_ to show it how angry she was, but-

  


But.... ultimately, it was her fault that everything had gone so badly. She had to own up to that fact.

  


She had been stalking the Chosen Children for hours after the Glitch told her what she had to do and teleported her to the forest. She had followed them, waiting for just the right moment to send Impmon in, intending to let it pick them off one by one stealthily, but...

  


There had been something about them...  something that ha d pissed her off. The way they talked to each other, relaxed and happy and-  _ intimate _ , somehow.  Like they were this big happy family.

 

Especially the boy who went off on his own to the river. He had been whistling, so peaceful and careless, talking and laughing with his cute little digimon.

 

It was like… they weren't even the same  _ species _ as her.  She was all awful and rotten inside, and these kids, they were all so- so  _ normal _ , so  _ happy _ . 

 

She wanted to break that happiness.

 

So she rushed in, gave the order to attack too soon, pushed Impmon to evolve- and they got their asses handed to them. In hindsight, she could clearly see how stupid she'd been.

 

And it was even worse that they didn't take the opportunity to beat her while she was down; the red-headed girl had actually offered to _shake her hand_. She'd been laughing at her, Eleena was sure.

 

_ Whatever the Glitch does to me after this, I'm going to deserve it _ , she thought, utterly disgusted with herself. 

  


A small voice broke through her thoughts. “Um... Eleena?”

  


She gritted her teeth. She didn't want to talk to Impmon right now; if she talked to it, she would fly off the handle, and she couldn't _do_ that anymore. She had to be calm, she had to stay focused, she had to _not bite the head of_ _f_ _her stupid, worthless digimon-!_

  


“ I- I'm sorry.”

  


She stopped in her tracks.  Slowly, she turned her head to stare at the digimon by her side.  Out of everything she'd expected  to hear from it- an apology wasn't it.

  


It flinched away from her eyes, looking down at its feet. “I-I-I mean- it was a stupid plan, but... I shouldn't have let myself get distracted. I should have... should have...” It was obviously expecting her to punish it.

  


As she watched it, strange ideas started revolving in her head. She wondered, briefly, what it would be like to have Impmon sit on her shoulder. To feel like she wanted to whistle. To have someone to laugh with, talk with, live with...

  


Those thoughts scared her more than the Glitch. More than dying at the hands of those kids. It made something in her chest ache terrible.

  


She shook her head, and started walking again. “It doesn't matter,” she mumbled, not looking back. She didn't want to look at it anymore.

 

It hurt too much.

  


~

  


“...and then she just ran off,” Megan said. “I mean, we have no idea who she is, or why she was attacking us. What were we even supposed to do?”

  


She and the others were gathered in Vega's room. They all watched her as she explained what had happened that afternoon.

 

She wasn't too hopeful that they would get anything useful out of him, but she figured it was worth a shot. Trustworthy or not, he was definitely knowledgeable about the Digital World.

  


After she finished her story, Vega went still and silent for a very long time. After a few minutes of silence, the Chosen Children started looking at each other worriedly. 

 

“Um, Vega?” Megan asked. “You ok, there, buddy? 

 

“Did you just... freeze or something?” Cameron asked, frowning. 

  


“ _ ... so that's what happened,”  _ Vega said  quietly  to himself. “ _ How unfortunate.” _

  


“What?” Andrew demanded. “What happened?! Who is that girl?”

  


“ _I need to gather more information,”_ Vega said, completely ignoring the human's questions. “ _Guard the temple for now. Do not_ _leave it for any reason_ _.”_

 

A nd just like that, he disappeared.

  


Megan threw her hands up. “Well, that's just bloody excellent!”

  


“What do we do now?” Desoto asked.

  


“I suppose we do what he says,” Cameron said, shrugging. “I mean, what else is there to do?”

  


“We could go after her ourselves,” Megan suggested.

  


“That's an option,” said Andrew. “I'm worried about seeking her out, though. What if she's more prepared the next time we fight her?”

 

“Oh come on, we wiped the floor with her last time,” Cameron said. “Besides, this time we can get the drop on her!”

  


“We haven't actively gone against Vega's orders before, though,” Gabumon said quietly. “I'm worried he might get angry… I know you guys don't trust him that much, but he hasn't betrayed us so far!”

 

“We shouldn't wait for him to betray us,” Lopmon said quietly.

  


“Well, I for one do not plan to play to his whims forever,” Megan said crossly. “We can wait for a little while, but if he doesn't come back soon _and_ give us a good explanation for his actions... well, maybe we'll have to strike out on our own.”

  


“You know, he can probably still hear us,” Andrew pointed out.

  


“Probably,” Cameron agreed. “If he wants to do something about it, he can.”

  


“You know, I doubt he has much power on his own,” Megan said, tapping her chin thoughtfully. “Otherwise, why would he need us?”

  


Cameron and Desoto murmured their agreement, but Andrew still looked worried, his mouth twisted into an uncertain frown.

  


Megan touched him gently on the shoulder, and gave him a meaningful look. “We're not going to let our guard down, with him _or_ that girl.”

 

He sighed, and nodded. 

  


She clapped her hands. “Alright; if there's nothing else we have to do right now, let's go play soccer!”

  


~

  


“ _** I am disappointed in you both ** _ .”

  


Impmon hung it's head. Eleena clenched her teeth and kept looking straight forwards, refusing to be cowed.

 

The Glitch didn't need a physical form to give the impression of staring them down in disapproval.

“ _** I would teach you a lesson in obedience... unfortunately,  ** _ _** time is growing short. ** _ _**. The Chosen Children will be prepared for your next attack; you require a more powerful weapon.” ** _

  


Eleena cocked her head to one side, wary and confused. “What do you mean, weapon?” she asked.

  


Suddenly, the glitch device began to burn in her pocket. She snatched it out, hissing as it singed her fingers.

  


“ _** I am giving a small amount of my own power to you, ** _ ”  The  Glitch said.  “ _** And I will assist Impmon in evolving to a level beyond what you have achieved on your own.” ** _

  


“We don't need this,” Eleena protested immediately. “We can take down the Chosen Children by ourselves!”

 

It wasn't like she cared about the Glitch's opinion of her… but she had to admit, it stung to know that it regarded her as a failure. If only it would give her one more chance, she _knew_ she could live up to its expectations!

  


“Yeah!” Impmon backed her up, but it's voice sounded unsure. 

 

She shot it a glare.  _ Shut up and let me do the talking, _ she willed it.

  


“ _** ENOUGH! ** _ ”  The voice roared at them.  “ _** If you refuse to serve me, I will reduce you back down to the nothing you used to be. Is that really what you want?” ** _

  


Eleena turned her head away, her hands clenching into fists. “...No.” 

  


“ _** Then you will accept this power, and use it,”  ** _ It said firmly. _** “The Chosen Children must be stopped at all costs- Vega ** _ _** 's plans ** _ _** must not be allowed to succeed. If you defeat them, I will grant you power beyond your wildest imagination... but if you fail-” ** _

  


“I understand,” Eleena said. She squeezed the glitch device into her palm, ignoring how it burned her. “I won't fail you again.”

  


“Eleena- I don't need this!” Impmon hissed at her. “I can beat them on my own, please, just give me one more chance!”

  


She brushed it aside  without a second thought. Stepping forward, she jutted out her chin. “I'm ready. Give me the power I need.”

  


She would stand up to the Chosen Children. And this time... she would _destroy_ them.

  


~

“Eleena, _please_!” Impmon hissed.

  


The human had its back to him, and refused to turn around. When he reached out and grabbed the edge of it's shirt, desperately trying to gain it's attention, it batted his hand away.

  


“ _ **What's this?”**_ The Glitch's voice rang out, cruelly amused. “ _ **Impmon, you don't seem excited by the gift I want to give to you.**_ ”

  


Impmon swallowed hard. “Th-that's not it, Master! I just, I-” He clasped his hands behind his back and bowed his head.

  


Why  _ was _ he so afraid? Wasn't this the power he'd always longed for? The power to defeat his enemies, to stand up and fight on his own? He should be begging for this chance!

  


But he could feel something from the Glitch… a force of will that made his skin crawl. This wasn't a gift- it was a punishment. He could just  _ tell _ .

  


The Glitch laughed, and he cringed. “ _**Don't bother trying to hide your cowardice from me, Impmon. I can see into your thoughts; I know how much you fear me.”** _

  


Impmon clenched his hands into fists, trembling. “I- I 'm not afraid of anything! And I'm certainly not scared of  the likes of  _ you!” _

  


He knew it was a mistake to lash out against the Glitch as soon as the words left his mouth. There was an ominous tremor in the ground, and suddenly he was lifted off his feet by an awesome, unstoppable force.

  


He  gasped and squirmed, held immobile in midair. The Glitch laughed once again, rough and terrible in his ears. “ _**You have hardly developed from the sniveling, crawling thing that begged for my help all those years ago. You're still filled with fear and loneliness, you still loathe yourself. You poor, pathetic little creature.”** _

  


The Glitch's words cut him deeply, but he refuses to let it see. “I'm not pathetic!” Impmon yelled. “I'm not lonely! Let me go, I'll show you how I've developed!”

  


“ _ **You have failed me too many times already,”**_ The Glitch said coldly. “ _ **I should have melded you to my purposes years ago.”**_

  


Power flowed through his body. It was like evolution for a moment, the heady rush of energy, but it grew hotter and hotter, power swelling under his skin until it _hurt._ He started to scream, flailing and kicking in the Glitch's grip.

  


“ _ **Now, behold a power beyond your wildest dreams!”**_ The Glitch cried.

  


The power peaked, and Impmon's whole body screamed out as it was pulled apart, energy swelling out and out, growing too fast, too hot, too much-!

  


The last thing he heard before everything was lost in the rushing darkness was his own voice crying out in pain and fear.


	10. Episode 10- The Fall and The Lift

They waited all day for Vega to return. Soccer could only occupy them for so long, and after a half-hearted supper, none of them felt like doing much of anything.

 

“If he's not back by noon tomorrow,” Megan declared as they cleaned up after the meal, “We'll go after that girl ourselves.”

 

There was a general murmur of assent. Desoto sighed, absently scritching Patamon's head. He didn't want to go after the girl again. He'd always considered himself something of a pacifist, and going after glitched digimon was bad enough- hurting another human was _wrong_.

 

But, the others were right… if they didn't find her, she'd come after them eventually. He supposed it fell under self defense.

 

He still didn't like it.

 

They went to bed with that ultimatum hanging over their heads, and as it turned out, they didn't even have to wait until noon. Desoto jolted awake in the middle of the night as the bed shook underneath him. He sat bolt upright, squeezing Patamon to his chest.

  


“De, you're squishing me!” they protested.

  


“Sorry,” he mumbled, loosening his grip slightly.

  


“Who's rocking the boat,” Agumon muttered, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

  


Around Desoto, the rest of his teammates struggled out of the covers and to their feet. “Something's coming this way,” Megan said, already in determined battle mode.

  


“ Yeah, no shit,” Andrew grumbled.

 

“Stop sassing me and put a shirt on,” Megan said, throwing his clothes at him. 

 

Desoto's heart was in his throat as he pulled on a t-shirt and his jeans. Was it the girl from yesterday? Or was it some new threat?

 

Megan stopped by him to run a hand through his hair. “It'll be ok, De,” she said, her voice low. “No matter what, we'll protect you.”

 

He wasn't sure whether to be grateful for the reassurance, or frustrated that she felt she had to protect him, (Although it was kind of true.) So he just stayed quiet and followed her out to see what was going on. 

 

As soon as they got outside, it was easy to see what was making the ground shake with a noise like an approaching earthquake. Something big was heading towards the temple; a vaguely humanoid figure, so tall that it was wading through the trees like chest-deep water. 

 

It hunched over and t wo large black wings flapped open  from it's back ,  sending a powerful gust of wind tearing across the mountaint o p. Desoto  snatched Patamon out of the air to keep them from being blown away.

  


“What the hell is that?!” Andrew yelled. “Is it a Glitchmon?”

  


“I don't... _think_ so,” Lopmon said in response. He sounded scared, which was unusual enough to put Desoto even more on edge. 

  


“ Everyone, evolve  _ now _ ,” Megan shouted over the noise of wind.

  


Andrew and Cameron and her held up their digivices. Their digimon burst into light, and emerged as their champion forms.

  


Desoto held his up as well, in the hopes of getting some information about the- the _whatever_ it was that was approaching them. A small picture appeared on the screen; it looked like the girl's digimon from the other day, but all warped and stretched out, with a creepy, stitched-together mask over it's face.

 

 _Neodevimon. Level- Mega. Type- Virus_ it read underneath the picture for a second. Then, the screen flickered, and a jumbled string of nonsense characters scrolled began scrolling down it.

  


“Guys, I th-think it's her,” he said. He was breathless with fear, trembling with it- but still, he couldn't stand the thought of hurting another human being. “Please, try not to-”

  


“We won't hurt her if we don't have to, De,” Megan said. “But we may have no choice, buddy.”

  


Desoto hugged Patamon close to him as the Digimon approached. 

 

“It'll be ok,” his digimon whispered to him.

  


He bit his lip. He could only hoped so.

  


~

  


Eleena felt dizzy with power as she rode on Neodevimon's shoulder. For no particular reason, she found herself laughing, her whole body shaking with it.

 

Watching Impmon evolve had been like watching a star implode. She could _feel_ the strange, twisted energy coming off it in shuddering waves, like something that was fundementally _wrong_ in this world- something that should never have been created.

 

As it stood above her, wordless and malevolent, she had felt… not like she was no longer afraid, but like she had pushed so far through the boundaries of fear that she moved beyond it. She had _ascended_ fear.

 

Now, all she could feel was a high, ruthless euphoria. At last, she had power. At last, she had _control_. She would finally take vengeance on the world that had hurt her so much.

 

Nothing was going to stand in her way. 

 

She  was riding that high as Vega's temple came into view; the Glitch had shown her images of it so she could know what she was looking for.  She could see the Chosen children  standing on the mountainside nearby, their  champion-level digimon as small as toys from  her vantage.

  


A fierce, bare-toothed grin spread across her teeth. It was time. 

  


NeoDevimon held up one massive claw, and swept it across the mountainside. The digimon and their humans scattered to either side, and she laughed as they ran, the air burning in her throat and lungs.

  


She felt like she was burning up in the atmosphere of her own power, the pressure too much for her weak human body to take. She was so far gone, she didn't even care if this was the end of her; if this was how she was going out, she would glory in it. 

  


“ _ Nova Blast! _ ”  The  red-headed girls' t-rex digimon spat a fireball at them . Neodevimon swatted it away like an annoying fly, then brought its fist  swinging down to crush the  puny digimon.  Before it could hit,  The blonde boy's wolf digimon leapt up and bit into Neodevimon's  fist with a snarl . 

 

It gave a low, groaning noise of pain behind it's mask.  It's reactions were sluggish, like it wasn't entirely in control of its own body.

  


Eleena scowled. What was wrong with it? “Don't let them get that close! Destroy them!” she ordered.

  


It slowly shook its head from side to side, like it was in pain. Eleena wobbled on her perch, barely managing to catch herself before she fell. 

 

“Hey, watch it!” she yelped, her heart doing a somersault. If she fell from this height-! 

  


The purple rabbit digimon jumped up into Neodevimon's face and started scratching at its eyes like a rabid cat.

  


Neodevimon shrieked, and reached up to grab it. As it raised its arm, its elbow clipped Eleena, knocking her clear off its shoulder. There was a moment of disbelief as she hung in the air, weightless- then she began to fall.

  


She screamed, flailing for a handhold. She managed to grab onto a ragged end of its hair, slowing her descent, but after a few seconds it slipped through her sweat soaked hands.

  


She fell into the trees. Branches lashed at her as she plummeted, rushing down at an incredible speed. She was certain that her life was about to end, but before she could hit the ground, a large shrub cushioned her fall, broken branches exploding around her.

  


She lay there for a second, hardly breathing, shocked she hadn't managed to break her neck. Cautiously, she tried to get to her feet.

  


That was a mistake. _Everything_ hurt. She was covered in cuts and bruises, her hands were torn to ribbons from clutching at the branches she fell past, there were splinters stuck in her skin all over, and she was pretty sure she'd broken at least one rib.

  


But somehow, despite the searing, aching pain that coursed through her, she managed to struggle to her feet. She clutched at her chest, every breath bringing a wave of fresh agony.

  


She stared up at Neodevimon, who was still fighting the Chosen Children. All at once, anger welled up inside of her. It hadn't even noticed that she'd fallen!

 

“I... thought... you were supposed to obey me?!” She coughed out weakly. “You were supposed to give me power, not get me killed!”

  


It's foot crashed down beside her, and the impact knocked her off her feet. She groaned, and it took a long time for her head to stop spinning. She crawled up onto her hands and knees. “Obey me.. obey me!”

  


She struggled to her feet, and hobbled over to Neodevimon. “Obey me!” she yelled up at it, shaking her fists in the air.

  


It didn't even seem to hear her. As it rushed past her, attacking the t-rex digimon,  its foot clipped her, sending her sprawling to the ground once more. She cried out in pain and curled up around herself, tears springing to her eyes.

 

“ Why... why won't you obey me?!” She pushed herself up on trembling arms. “ _ Why won't you listen  _ _ to me _ ?!”

  


Finally, her words seemed to get through it somehow; it turned and looked down a her, and her heart stopped when she saw it's face through the mask. Its red eyes, glowing through its mask, were empty- none of the vibrant emotion that she saw when she looked into Impmon's eyes showed here. 

  


Even when it  had  turned into Devimon, it had still looked like itself.  It had still  _ felt _ like Impmon.  This... this wasn't the same mischievous,  surprisingly sweet, overconfident little ass that she had come to know and even  somewhat trust since she came to this world. 

  


This... was nothing more than a mindless  monster.

  


“No,” she whispered, horrified. “No, this is- this is wrong, it's not what I wanted!” 

  


Neodevimon turned away from her. It lifted its long, brutal claws, and dug them into the mountainside. It pulled, and the earth came crumbling away with a sound like thunder, rolling down the hill towards her.

  


Eleena covered her face with her arms; there was no way she could run in this state, so all she could do was close her eyes and pray.

  


She heard the flow of rocks and dirt approaching her, and for the second time that day, she was sure she would die. But somehow, through the sound of tumbling earth rushed around her, she wasn't crushed.

  


She looked up to see the redhead's digimon standing above her, blocking the falling rocks with its own body. It's human was crouching next to her, looking down at her with concern.

  


“You alright? You look like you've been hit by a train,” she said. Her face was covered with dirt, and there was a bleeding cut high up on her forehead. “ _Two_ trains. At the same time.”

  


“...Why did you do that?” Eleena asked, shaken. Was this some kind of trap?

  


The girl's eyes softened. “You'll understand eventually.”

  


Finally, the avalanche stopped, and the t-Rex digimon, shaking with exhaustion, de-evolved into a tubby little orange creature. The redhead sighed in relief, and reached down to held Eleena up.

  


Eleena batted her hand out of the way, more out of fear than pride. “Don't need your help,” she mumbled, feeling ashamed, and levered herself up, ignoring the pain that still pulsed through her. 

  


She scrambled up over the rocks, to see where NeoDevimon was and how the fight had progressed. The other Chosen Children's digimon all looked as tired and beat-up as the t-Rex; Neodevimon had been too powerful for them.

  


To her own surprise, that didn't bring Eleena any satisfaction; it just made her feel sick.  _ As soon as it's wiped out the chosen Children, it's going to turn on me next _ , she thought.

 

The first moment of power and control in her life had turned around to make her feel even more desperate and helpless than she ever had before. 

 

_ Fitting _ , she thought bitterly.  _ I suppose this is my punishment for thinking I could ever escape. _

  


NeoDevimon ignored the collapsed Champions for the moment. Instead, it turned to advance on something else at the base of the mountain, and Eleena had to squint to see what it had found.

  


The boy that had been whistling the other day was crouched among the scattered rocks, holding onto the little bat/pig digimon that couldn't evolve. He was staring up at Neodevimon, pure terror showing on his face.

  


NeoDevimon swung one hand forward. At the center of its palm, a ball of energy began to spin, growing brighter and brighter with every second that passed. 

  


Eleena's stomach dropped. She hadn't seen it use this attack before, but she got the feeling that if it unleashed the energy building in its hand, it would incinerate the boy and his digimon.

  


“Desoto!” the redhead shouted behind her, horrified. The other Chosen Children and their digimon started to pick themselves up and rush forward, but none of them were close enough to stop NeoDevimon's attack in time.

  


Eleena didn't know why the sight filled her with such sickness and fear. She didn't understand why she was suddenly desperate to protect the kid, to throw herself in front of the blast in his place, but she did. She pushed herself to her feet and ran, pushing her body through the pain.

  


“NO, STOP!” She screamed, racing forward, knowing she was going to be too late. 

  


A light burst into her eyes- but it wasn't the light of Neodevimon's attack.

  


Two enormous white wings spread out in front of the whistling boy, and Neodevimon's attack blew backwards. It stumbled back, roaring in anger.

  


A new digimon was standing  before it , defiant. A  glowing angel with six wings, long, golden hair, a silver helmet, and a  tall  golden staff  was now protecting the boy.  “ I didn't want to fight you,”  it said with a deep, clear, carrying voice. “But I will not stand aside and let you hurt my partner  and our friends!”

  


It lifted its staff, and a blast of energy shot forth from the tip. NeoDevimon shrieked as it was struck directly in the chest, stumbling back and clutching at the wound.

  


The angel lifted off the ground, it's wings flapping and scattering white feathers across the field. “Now, you will _pay_ for what you have done. _Hand of fate!”_

  


The battle was on again, as Eleena watched the two digimon fight with a mixture of awe and terror.

  
~

  


Desoto gaped up at his digimon as they- he now?- flew around Neodevimon. His staff clashed with its claws, sparks spraying out in every direction. 

 

He darted away, dodging to the side and baiting Neodevimon away from the humans. It took the bait, groaning as it hauled itself to its feet and began lumbering after him.

  


After a minute,  Desoto managed to shake off his shock long enough to  hold up his digivice and  get a read on his partner's new form.  _ Angemon. Level- Champion. Type- Vaccine, _ it read.

  


He ha dn't put much though into what  Patamon might evolve into, but if he had, he never could have come up with anything half as cool as this. Angemon was huge, powerful,  _ awesome _ \- Desoto staggered to his feet and cheered wildly, pumping his fists in the air.

  


“De, are you ok?!” Andrew rushed over to him. Cameron and Megan were running to catch up with him. 

 

Their digimon were curled up in a heap nearby. Lopmon and Agumon were back to their Rookie forms, sleeping, and Garurumon was licking gingerly at his wounds, looking absolutely exhausted.

  


“I'm fine,” he said, which was… _mostly_ true. He was a little bruised and battered, but he'd be fine. “Are you seeing this? That's Angemon! Isn't he amazing?!”

 

“Um, sure, but-” Megan squinted worriedly up at the aerial battle, shielding her eyes against the glare of the sun. “Is he gonna be able to win against that thing?”

 

Desoto opened his mouth to tell her to stop dissing his digimon; but just at that moment, there was a horrendous sound of impact. 

 

He turned, eyes wide, to see that Angemon had crashed to the ground, leaving a mile-long trench of destruction in the forest as he fell. Desoto couldn't even open his mouth to make the horrified sound building up in his chest before his digimon shot back up through the foliage, staff held at the ready, and ruched Neodevimon once again.

 

Suddenly, Desoto was terrified. What if Angemon got hurt? God, what if he got _killed_?!

 

He turned to his friends. “We gotta stop this,” he said desperately. 

  


“We can't.”

  


He looked up to see that standing on the edge of the avalanche fallout, holding her side and looking like she'd been dragged through a barbed-wire fence, was Eleena. 

 

“It's out of control,” she said, jerking her chin towards Neodevimon. Her voice sounded completely dead. “I can't make it stop.”

  


“Oh yeah, and we're totally gonna trust _your_ word!” Cameron said, putting his hands on his hips. 

  


She shot him a look so vicious that it sent a shiver up Desoto's spine. “You think I'm happy about this situation?”

  


Cameron threw his hands up. “You were trying to kill us!"  


  


“Yeah, well...” Eleena looked up towards her digimon, who was screaming and raking its claws through the air, trying to catch Angemon. “It's most likely gonna kill _me_ when it's done with you.”

  


Desoto's stomach was tied up in knots. What was he supposed to do? If he didn't intervene, something terrible could happen to Angemon… and if Angemon died- well, he was their last line of defense.

  


Just then, there was a staticky noise, and out of nowhere Vega appeared in the center of their loose gathering, He spun quickly, seeming agitated. “ _What are you doing?! You need to defeat the Glitch's servants!”_

  


“What?” Megan asked. “Wait- I didn't even know you could appear outside the temple.”

  


“ _That is not_ _important_ _at the moment_ _,”_ Vega snapped. “ _The girl, and that abomination of a digimon- you have to destroy them both, now!”_

  


Eleena tensed up, looking scared, but still ready to fight.

  


Desoto gasped in dismay- this was exactly what he'd hoped to avoid. “No, we can't!”

  


“Wait, wait, back up,” Andrew said. “The _Glitch's_ servants?”

  


“ _They are under_ _the Glitch's_ _command, and are working to free it and set it loose upon the digital world,”_ Vega said hurriedly. “ _If they succeed, the world will be thrown into chaos. You MUST stop them!”_

  


Desoto stepped forward. “I am  _ not _ going to 'destroy' her, or her digimon! And neither are my friends!”

  


“He's right,” Megan said immediately, the kind of rock-solid determination in her voice that Desoto had never known her to back down from.

  


Andrew and Cameron, however, shot each other an uneasy look. 

 

“What are we going to do about Neodevimon, though?” Cameron asked. “Even now, Angemon is barely holding it back. If it won't stop attacking, we'll have to-”

  


“NO! We're finding another way.” Desoto was mad all of a sudden. Why was violence the only solution anyone could see? Why did Vega think it was ok to use them as his own personal weapons?

 

He wasn't going to stand for it anymore.

  


“There has to be another way.” He clenched his hands into fists. “There _has_ to be!”

  


“Why do you care?” 

 

He looked up to see Eleena looking at him warily.  She turned her eyes away from him, seeming almost…  _ shy _ suddenly. “I- you know what I did to you. Why would you... try and protect us?”

  


Desoto sighed, and ran a hand through his hair. “Because you're _one_ of us!”

  


She stared at him.

  


“Aren't you?” he asked, searching her eyes. “You're human being. And you have a digimon\- that makes you a Chosen Child, right?”

  


She looked… lost. He was surprised to see her so vulnerable, now. “I- I still don't understand.”

  


“ Neither do I,” he admitted. “ But that's just the way things  _ are _ . ”

  


“ _Enough of this!”_ Vega shouted, interrupting their discussion. He began to rise up into the air, spinning faster and faster. “ _If you truly refuse to destroy the Glitch's servants, then I will be forced to-”_

  


“ _ Fox Fire!” _

  


Vega flickered and gave a staticky cry as a bolt of blue fire shot through him. 

 

Garurumon stood in his path, growling, his hackles raised. Cameron stood by his side, scowling.

  


“Back off,” Cameron warned Vega. “We told you what we decided; we're not going to kill them.”

  


“Yeah.” Andrew stepped forward, and put a hand on Desoto's shoulder, squeezing gently.

 

Desoto shot him a grateful glance; he knew Andrew hated conflict even more than he did, so having his support meant a lot. 

  


Vega stopped spinning. “ _...you have no idea who you're making an enemy of,”_ he said quietly.

  


Megan's hand on his other shoulder was much more expected than her brother's, but no less welcome. “Back _off_ , Vega,” she said. “You don't know who _you're_ making an enemy of!”

  


There was a long, tense moment of silence, and Desoto's heart beat fast.

  


Finally, Vega sighed loudly.  “ _ It doesn't matter anyway,”  _ he said,  exasperated .  “ _ It's too late for that monster you're protecting.” _

  


Eleena stiffened. “What's that supposed to mean?” she demanded.

  


“ _ Your digimon- it can't control the glitch power within it,”  _ Vega explained. _ “Just look at it- it's breaking down.” _

  


They all looked. Now that it had been pointed out to him, Desoto could see it; Neodevimon's features were blurring together, and it seemed to be having trouble moving like it had before- it was like it was struggling against it's own body.

  


Angemon swept forward, and struck the larger digimon dead-center in the chest. It howled in agony, curling in on itself. Angemon flew up high, drawing his spear and preparing what was sure to be the final blow-

  


But suddenly, with a terrible, rending, shattering screech, Neodevimon began to… _warp_ , it's whole body jittering and fuzzing like a bad TV image. 

  


The bolt of energy that flew from Angemon's staff fizzled out before it could even reach it's target. There was a strange, shimmering field that surrounded Neodevimon's body, like heat waves. It began to slowly creep out, twisting the forest around it as it grew.

  


“Angemon, get out of there!” Desoto yelled.

  


“What's happening?” Andrew asked, scared.

  


“ _ It's becoming corrupted, _ ”  said Vega.

  


~

  


Eleena watched in horror as NeoDevimon fell to the ground. It clawed at its own mask, its screams wavering and breaking down along with it's body.

  


“ _ In a matter of minutes, it will be consumed by the glitch, and will be the same kind of monster you  _ _ have fought  _ _ before,”  _ Vega said.  “ _ Then you will have no choice but to destroy it.” _

  


She had heard enough. She didn't entirely understand what Vega was talking about, but she wasn't going to stand by and just watch it happen.

  


She started to run towards Neodevimon. The redhead grabbed her by the arm, trying to hold her back. 

 

“Don't!” She yelled. “He's out of control, he might-”

  


Eleena wrenched her arm out of the smaller girl's grip. “Don't touch me!” she snarled, and sprinted off.

  


It didn't matter that her body ached with every jolting step; it didn't matter that she was tired, it didn't matter that her actions were probably futile anyway. She had to get to NeoDevimon, had to stop this from happening.

  


As she watched, the whole shape of it began to warp and waver. It's features began bleeding together, its fingers melting against its face, its wings dripping down its back like oil. All the while it moaned, in obvious agony.

  


She came to a halt several yards away, her feet sliding on the loose rocks from the landslide, just out of the warping field that crept out from it; she had no idea what would happen to her if she touched it.

  


“Stop it!” she screamed. “Stop it, this isn't what I wanted! This isn't what _either_ of us wanted!”

  


Neodevimoan growled, thrashing it's head from side to side. It made no move to attack her, and ignored the angel digimon as it flew past, back towards it's human.

  


“Come on, de-evolve!” she pleaded. “Fight it off, make it turn back! You have to- you have to, o-or...”

  


She dropped her head. Her shoulders trembled, and for the first time since she'd come to this strange, horrible world, she couldn't hold back her feelings.

 

“I- I'm sorry,” she whispered. “This is all my fault. If I'd never come here, you wouldn't be- you wouldn't-!” she choked on her own words.

  


Inexplicably, her words seemed to calm it somewhat. It opened it's eyes- the same bright, emerald green of Impmon's eyes- and looked straight at her.

  


“...Impmon?” she asked, shakily. “Impmon, are you still in there?”

  


The digimon shuddered and groaned. It's image began to flicker  again.

 

“No!” She stumbled forward. “Please, please- I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I never wanted this to happen! I didn't want to hurt you!”

 

And she found, as she said those words, that they were true. Somehow, despite her best efforts, she'd come to care for the snarky, weird little digimon that the Glitch had entrusted to her.

 

Maybe she even loved it- if her shriveled, awful heart was still capable of love.

 

She kept walking forwards, no longer caring about how much this was going to hurt her.  “Please don't die, or wh-whatever it is that's happening to you,”  she babbled. “I don't care, just- just come back, ok? I'm sorry.”

  


She could feel it when she stepped onto corrupted ground; it was the same sensation as walking when her feet were asleep. She pushed on, even though the dull pins-and-needles sensation crept her out.

  


Nothing terrible happened to her- she didn't burst into flames or start melting like the wicked witch of the west. She walked up until she was close enough to touch Neodevimon. Its skin was flickering and popping; she reached out a cautious hand, and it felt like TV static.

  


“Impmon... Impmon,  _ please _ .. come back to me,”  she pleaded. It felt like the first time she'd really spoken honestly in years. “I'm so sorry, I- I'd do  _ anything  _ to have you back. Do you hear me?”

  


She touched her palm to Neodevimon's chest, and it stilled. It's eyes closed, and gave a low, contented hum.

  


She bowed her head. “Nothing else matters,” she said quietly.

 

~

 

_ Corruption was painful. _

 

_ Impmon- Devimon? He didn't even know who he  _ was _anymore- was locked up inside of his own head, feeling as his body was twisted and flayed out of his own control. His data was all tangled up and twisted the wrong ways, and now it was sick, decaying off of him like the mud and rocks had slid down the side of the mountain._

 

_ He didn't try to resist. This pain… it felt right, somehow. He knew he wasn't a good digimon, he hadn't done good things in his life- and here, at last, were the consequences. He didn't deserve anything better than this. _

 

_ He understood that his consciousness was slowly slipping away. Eventually, he would just fade away like this, and no one would ever care, and no one would ever mourn him.  _

 

_ It was better this way. _

 

_ It was the right thing… but somehow, it hurt too much to stand. So much more than the physical pain he was in. _

 

_ He'd been alone for so, so long. He felt like he'd wandered the entire digital world, searching for something to give his life meaning, and he'd never found anything. That was why he had finally turned to the Glitch- it was just too sad to be on his own like that. _

 

_ He'd thought he was seeking power, but really, all he wanted was to not be  _ alone _anymore._

 

_ Had that been just too much to ask? Why hadn't he ever found anyone who would have him? Was there really something wrong with him? _

 

_ It was just too sad. Too sad. If he could move his physical body, he would have wept. As it was, all he could do was mourn silently in his own head. Alone. _

 

_ Alone. _

 

_ Alone. _

 

…

 

_ And then- _

 

_ A light burst into his mind, brilliant, almost painful in it's intensity. Warmth enveloped him, a wave of force that rocked through his body and mind, leaving him breathless. _

 

_ That's when he felt her. That tiny, frightened,  _ angry _human child- she was crying for him._

 

_ He heart was calling out to him desperately, begging for his forgiveness, begging for him to  _ stay, _to_ stay with her, please, don't go, it's all my fault, I'm so sorry!

 

Impmon, I'm so sorry I hurt you.

 

_ Her tiny little hand was pressed against his skin. He marveled at the waves of energy that pulsed out from that simple point of connection. _

 

_ How had he not realized it before? How had he not felt it? _

 

_ She was just as lonely as he was. All this time, she had been searching as well. And by some miracle, they had finally found each other. _

 

_ He wasn't alone anymore, not at all! _

 

She _was there with him. His human._

 

_His_ partner _._

 

_ She was there, and she loved him so, so much. _

 

_ His heart called out to hers, a desperate cry that pulled his mind free from his crumbling physical form. Energy resonated between them, a wave that grew stronger and stronger as it echoed between the two points. _

 

I heard you, _he thought back at her, suddenly determined._ I'm here. I'm not going to leave you.

 

_ And with an immense force of will- he felt himself beginning to change. _

 

~

 

Eleena's eyes burst open. She could swear she'd heard a voice in her head- Impmon's voice!

 

A blinding pink light emanated from the place where her hand rested on Neodevimon's skin. Warmth flowed through her, lighting up her arms, her torso, all down her legs and even her face. She got the feeling she was probably glowing.

 

Slowly, it's distorted, melting body began to disappear- starting from the highest point of it's wingtips, it dissolved into light, tiny, bright particles floating up and fading into the sky.

  


Eleena's eyes widened. She stumbled forward, grasping at it, trying to make it _stay_. “N-no! Don't go, please-!”

  


It reached out a single claw, and gently touched the tip of it to her cheek. She could feel it's spirit reaching out for her, reassuring her. 

 

_ Don't cry,  _ he whispered, and the softness of his voice and intent made her heart ache.

 

Then the rest of his body burst into swirling points of light- like dust motes, or fireflies, swirling out around her in a warm cloud.

  


Eleena could feel the tears she'd held back for so long spilling down her cheeks as she stared at the lights swirling around her. But even as most of the specks faded away in the air, a small amount of them rose and coalesced just above her head into a tiny, glowing ball.

  


The ball lowered, and she instinctively reached up to grab it. It was pleasantly warm, and dulled the pain in her torn-up palms as she cupped them around it.

  


The light faded, and in her hands was a tiny ball of dark purple fur.

  


Two little triangular ears popped up from it, and a set of bright green cats-eyes opened and blinked up at her. “E-Eleena?” it asked in a high, squeaky voice.

  


“Impmon?” she whispered, her voice thick.

  


The little creature rocked back and forth- a nod. “Well- I mean, right now I'm Kiimon, but I was Impmon when you- eep!”

  


She cuddled it close to her chest, laughing even as tears dripped down onto its head. “You're ok. You're really ok. Thank god,” she whispered, and pressed her cheek against its soft fur.

  


Kiimon said nothing it return; just rested next to her, and if it shed a few tears as well- Eleena wasn't going to injure its pride by mentioning them.


	11. Episode 11- Sixth Ranger

Andrew looked curiously over at  where  E leena was crouched on the ground, cradling her digimon to her chest.

 

Before  today, he hadn't thought she was capable of any emotion other than anger and maybe a low level of sarcastic humor, but now she was hugging her tiny digimon and outright  _ sobbing _ .

  


She glanced up at him, and scowled until he darted his eyes away. _I suppose she hasn't changed that much_ , he thought.

  


He focused instead on the devastation surrounding him; Neodevimon had caused some pretty wide-spread destruction, bringing down half the mountain face and flattening every tree in a half mile radius. It was like one of those environmental documentaries about the harmful effects of the logging industry.

  


Cameron and Desoto were some feet away from him, sitting on piles of rubble and tending to their poor, exhausted digimon. Megan was... actually, Andrew wasn't sure where she'd gotten to. 

 

He frowned, suddenly worried. He hadn't noticed her wander off; where could she be? He hadn't noticed her leave.

  


Before he could start panicking, he was distracted by Turuiemon returning from the plateau where the temple had somehow, miraculously survived the battle. 

 

 

“No luck,” he said, hopping from one pile of avalanche rubble to the next to reach Andrew's side. “I tried to get back in, but the temple is locked. I don't think Vega wants us coming back.”

  


Andrew sighed. He had sent Turuiemon back to get food and medical supplies; if they couldn't get them from the temple, they were kind of screwed. “Thanks for looking,” he said anyway. “You can de-evolve now.”

  


Turuiemon sighed with relief and practically fell back into his rookie form. “Urgh, I feel like I could sleep for a year.”

 

Andrew knelt down and gave him a hu g. “You did good, buddy. Hey- that digimon Eleena has with her; is it the same one she had when she attacked us before?”

  


“Check it with your digivice,” Lopmon murmured, laying down right there in the dirt and closing his eyes.

  


Andrew did,  sitting down next to Lopmon and stroking absently at his ears .  _ Kiimon. Level- Baby. Type- Data,  _ his digivice read.

 

“Huh. Guess even that monstrosity has a cute baby form,” he said.

  


“ That 's the lowest evolution level, ” Lopmon  supplies, sounding surprised . “We must have really done a number on that poor guy.  Well, Angemon, mostly.”

  


“I think the G _litch_ did a number on him,” Andrew said. “I have no idea how he even survived that.”

 

He shuddered, thinking about how it had screamed and  thrashed as it melted in on itself like an overbaked cake. He wondered what it would have looked like as a full Glitchmon… and decided he didn't need the nightmares those mental images would inspire.

 

“Hey.”

 

He looked up to see Desoto standing over him, cradling a tuckered out Patamon in his arms. 

 

“Mind if I sit down?” he asked.

 

“Go right ahead.” Andrew patted the dirt next to him, and Desoto sat, folding his long legs underneath him. “Angemon was awesome, by the way.”

 

“I know, right?” Desoto grinned at him. “I had no idea all that raw power and… bad-butt was hiding in this little guy.”

 

Andrew let out a high-pitched giggle. “Did you seriously just say 'bad-butt?'”

 

“Shut up.” Desoto elbowed him playfully. “I'm not a foul-mouthed degenerate like you and your sister.”

 

“I mean, it's not like I can deny that,” Andrew said, and they both laughed.

 

They sat in silence for a few moments. Desoto looked worried, but Andrew didn't want to push him; he'd talk eventually if he wanted to. 

 

And he did, shifting his feet and looking sideways at Andrew.  “ What do we do now?”  he asked quietly, his voice soft and vulnerable. “I mean, now that Vega's essentially disowned us.”

  


“I... guess we have to fend for ourselves,” Andrew said, leaning back on his hands. “I mean, even if Vega _did_ want us back, I wouldn't trust him.”

  


“Neither would I,” Desoto said fervently. “I can't believe he would ask us to kill one of our own kind…”

 

The melancholy atmosphere was broken by a cheerful voice from behind them.  “ Hey guys, what's going on?”

  


Andrew looked up to see Megan standing over him, a backpack slung over each shoulder and two more in her hands. 

  


“Nothing really; we can't get into the temple,” Andrew said.

 

Desoto pointed curiously at her bags.  “Um, what-?”

  


“What's the luggage for?” Megan held up her bags, grinning down at them. “To be entirely honest, I've been expecting things to go down like this. So, I was preparing in secret!

 

She slung one of the backpacks off her shoulder and unzipped it triumphantly. “Ta-daa! Food, clothes, water, and medicine! Enough to last us... well, maybe a day, with how much our digimon eat in one sitting.”

  


“Wow.” Andrew blinked down at the contents of the bag. “... I can't tell if this means you're really smart, or just sort of paranoid.”

  


“Let's just assume I'm a little bit of both,” she said with a sunny smile.

 

~

  


It took a while for Eleena to come back to herself and remember where she was.

  


Kiimon had fallen asleep in her arms, exhausted after its ordeal. She kept a close hold of it, irrationally afraid that it would disappear if she let it out of her sight.

 

She took a brief inventory of her physical state, which was much better than she could have expected. Somehow, whatever exchange of energies happened when Neodevimon disappeared had healed the worst of her wounds. She was still covered in scratches and bruises, but her limbs were articulating fine and she could breathe deeply again, he ribs no longer feeling like they'd been bent out of shape with a crowbar.

 

She stood up, shaking her hair out of her face and tucking the sleeping digimon under her arm.  She glanced over her shoulder, and saw the Chosen Children  and their digimon all  clustered up together,  talking and laughing with each other. 

 

A sudden wave of shame overtook her. She'd been ready to kill all of them, just because the Glitch told her to.

 

She really was a monster.

  


It was time for her to go. She got up and started walking away, sure that they wouldn't even notice her go, but-

  


“Hey, wait!”

  


Eleena stiffened at the redhead's voice. “What do _you_ want?” she growled, not even bothering to turn around. She didn't want anyone to see her in this state, much less _that girl._

  


“You weren't planning to sneak off again, were you?” The girl's voice was almost playful, like she was scolding and old friend.

 

What was her  _ deal _ ? Why couldn't she leave well enough alone?

  


“And what else am I supposed to do?” Eleena asked, folding her arms. “Stay with you losers?”

  


“Yes, stay with us losers,” Megan said. “Or are you going back to The Glitch?”

  


Eleena bit her lip. “...No. It's that- _thing's_ fault that Impmon almost-” she choked on the end of sentence and looked down, furious at herself for how the thought of what could have happened if she hadn't acted fast enough tormented her.

  


She felt a hand touch her elbow. It took a lot of mental effort not to wrench it out of her grip. 

 

“Then you haven't got anywhere else to go, have you?” The girl's voice was soft. “Might as well stay.”

  


“Vega wanted you to kill me,” Eleena pointed out.

  


The girl sighed. “Well, we didn't, did we? Vega- he's not talking to us right now. So don't worry about him.”

  


Eleena was torn- there was a part of her that wanted to accept the girl's offer, and stay with this strange group of children, try and make herself a part of their group. And there was another part that wanted to run as far away as she could. 

 

She wasn't sure which part was stronger right now.

  


“At least let us patch you up and feed you, ok?” Megan said. “You look like you've rolled down a hill into a blackberry patch. I'd feel bad to let you go wandering off in that state.”

  


The offer was tempting. Her body was still aching from the fall, and god, all she wanted to do was sleep, eat, drink, _recharge_.

 

But… she didn't deserve the kindness this girl was offering her. She should refuse.

 

_ What, and die out in the woods?  _ She thought bitterly.  _You're too selfish to do that. And besides… you can't take care of Kiimon on your own. Swallow your damn pride, girl._

  


She turned slowly, to see the girl smiling up at her. _How can she look so happy to be talking to someone who tried to kill her?_ Eleena wondered. “...Ok, fine. But I don't make any promises to stick around,” she mumbled.

  


“We'll see,” the girl said, infuriatingly smug. “You're like us, aren't you? You've got a digimon and a digivice, I'm pretty sure those are the qualifications for a Chosen Child.”

  


Eleena frowned. She dug into her pocket to retrieve her Glitch Device. “It's not the same, look-” she began, but then stopped short and stared at the gadget in her hand.

  


It was different  now ; it no longer had the strange, shifting geometry that made it hard to look at. It looked just like the devices the others had,  with a dull, plasticy red and white casing.

 

_ What happened?  _ She wondered.  _ Does it have something to do with what happened to Neodevimon? I guess.. maybe I've lost the Glitch's power. _

 

The idea made her feel awfully vulnerable, but also relieved. Honestly, she was glad to shuck that power off; if she never had to talk to the Glitch again in her life, it would be too soon.

  


“I told you!” The girl shoved right into her personal space to take a look at it, ignoring her when she hissed in anger. “What's that keychain thing?”

  


Grouchily moving away from the other girl, Eleena looked; attached to one corner of the device was a small tag with a symbol on it; a red, swirly heart. “I don't know, I didn't put it there.”

  


“Hm. Well, that's not important now,” the girl said. She straightened up and held her hand out- just like she had the other day. “My name is Megan. It's nice to formally meet you!”

  


Eleena stared at her for a second, then slowly put her- digivice?- back in her pocket. “I'm Eleena. I'm not shaking your hand.”

  


Megan shrugged. “Fair enough.”

 

“Hey, Megan, we're starting lunch without you!” the blonde boy yelled over at them. “Stop talking to the wild jaguar!”

 

“I'll talk to whatever vicious jungle cats I want!” Megan called back. Then she grabbed onto Eleena's free arm and started pulling her forward. “Come on, let's go get some food before they eat it all!”

  


As she stumbled to keep up with the short girl's much faster pace, Eleena wondered what in hell she'd just gotten herself into.


	12. Episode 12- Not Quite Free

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- Mentions of past bullying.

“Ooh, ooh, you've got a bite! Reel it in!”

  


Cameron cheered as Andrew pulled hard on his fishing line. But they had celebrated too soon; the line snapped, and the fish flopped back into the water and swam away. 

  


They both groaned. 

 

“Aw jeez, too bad,” Cameron said sympathetically, patting Andrew on the back.

 

Andrew laid down on the bank with a dramatic sigh. “Ughhh, this isn't working. I'm never gonna get any better at fishing.”

  


They had been  out here for about an hour, and Andrew's line had broken twice and his bait had been eaten three times. The only fish he'd managed to reel in was a nasty, prickly thing that they'd had to throw back for their own safety. 

 

Cameron shrugged.  “It just takes time and practice. My dad used to take me out fishing every Sunday; didn't you do anything like that with  _ your  _ dad _ ?” _

  


“No, because my dad actually loves me,” Andrew said bitterly. “...I'm sorry, was that mean?”

  


Cameron shrugged. “Yeah, a little.”

  


“ Ugh, god, sorry.” Andre rubbed his face. “I just- I feel so  _ useless _ . I can't cook, I can't fish, I can't do anything to help around camp; if it weren't for you guys, I'd never be able to survive on my own...”

  


“Hey, it's not like I have some kind of amazing survival sense,” Cameron said. It worried him when Andrew got like this; when he fell into one of his depressive streaks, sometimes he wallowed in them for hours. “It's mostly the digimon who know how to do stuff.”

  


“...I suppose that's true,” Andrew mumbled, flicking a pebble into the stream.

 

They were quiet for a while, both staring out at the still water. Cameron, for his part,  _ liked _ fishing; it was really peaceful. This was a good day for it, warm and still. 

 

And despite his moods, Andrew made good company. He was funny, and had a unique perspective on things that Cameron liked to listen to. 

 

They weren't great friends or anything; for the first couple weeks after they were all stuck in the Digital world, Andrew had been really shy around him. He'd hardly even made eye-contact when Cameron  tried talking to him. 

 

He liked to think they were a little closer now, but Andrew still tended to hold everything close to his chest. Cameron got the feeling he didn't really trust other people easily.

 

So he figured the best thing was not to push him too hard; just be friendly and calm, so Andrew could set the pace of their friendship. It was like coaxing a small, shy animal to be comfortable eating from his hand.

 

Out of nowhere, Andrew started talking again. “ I- actually, my grandpa used to take Megan and I down to the river sometimes, to fish and fool around and stuff. I was never very good at it, but it was kinda fun.”

 

This was interesting; Andrew had never talked about his family before. “That's cool. Did you ever catch anything?”

 

“Megan caught a snapping turtle once,” Andrew said, biting his lip. “That was the scariest moment of my life.”

 

Cameron laughed. “Oh my god, I can only imagine.” He switched his rod from his left hand to his right and stretched his free arm a bit. “Does your grandpa take you places all the time?”

 

Andrew was silent for a bit too long, and when Cameron turned to see the pensive look on his face, his stomach sank.  _ Aw shit. He misses his family, doesn't he? God, way to be an insensitive jerk, Cam.  _

 

Before he could apologize or anything, Andrew sucked in a breath and said, “Actually, he died last year.”

 

_ Oh. _ Cameron stared at him for a moment, shocked. “Man… I'm sorry, that's gotta be rough,” he said ,  rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

 

Andrew actually shot him a little smile. “Thanks. It's ok now, I was just kinda… messed up about it for a while.”

 

“Were you close?” Cameron ask. “My grandparents on my mom's side moved into our place live, eight years ago… I can hardly imagine losing them.”

 

“Yeah. He was like, kind of my role model.” Andrew laughed, and actually looked a little embarrassed. “Sorry, if you want me to stop talking-”

 

“Nah man, it's cool.” It was rare enough to see Andrew get all vulnerable and talky like this, he wanted to let the mood last as long as it could. “What was he like?”

 

“Well...” Andrew leaned back, his fishing rod dangling loosely between his legs. “He was very serious, but he always listened to whatever dumb kiddy stuff I wanted to talk about. He was a painter; he made these huge, beautiful oil paintings. I used to make these dumb doodles, and he would color them in for me.”

 

“Aww, that's sweet.” Cameron smiled at him. “Wait, you draw?”

 

“It's like, literally my only talent,” Andrew said. “I haven't had time for much of it since I got here.”

 

“I wanna see your stuff,” Cameron said. 

 

“I dunno...” Andrew had this sort of flustered, embarrassed grin. “It's not that great.”

 

“I'll judge that for myself, thank you very much,” Cameron said primly. “I may not know much about art, but I know what I like!”

 

Andrew giggled at that, but he still looked sort of sad around the edges.

 

Cameron rested his chin on his fist. “You miss him, don’t you?”

 

“I mean… I guess?” Andrew rubbed the back of his neck. “Well- no, yeah, of _course_ I do, I’m not a monster, but… I can’t help but wonder what he’d think of me now.”

 

“I can’t imagine he wouldn’t still love you,” Cameron said, concerned and a little confused at his answer.

 

“I mean, it’s just-” Andrew sighed gustily, and looked up at him. “Look, you know I’m gay, right? That’s not gonna be any kind of shock?”

  


“You’ve mentioned wanting to marry Freddy Mercury more than once, so yeah, I kinda assumed,” Cameron said with a hint of a smirk.

  


“I refuse to have any shame over that,” Andrew said firmly. “But, it’s like- I never came out to him. He was kinda… old-fashioned, and I was scared of what he’d say. And then he died, and… and I never got to tell him.”

  


Cameron chewed on his lip, trying to think of what to say. This was... _Way_ beyond his pay grade. He didn’t even think this much about his own feelings, he just sorta _had_ them. 

  


But he really wanted to make Andrew feel better.  “ Look,” he said, “I can’t speak for your grandpa, but if I was him, I’d be proud of you.”

  


Andrew looked up at him, and Cameron was struck by how vulnerable and open his face was. “Really?” he asked in a small voice.

  


“Really,” Cameron assured him, smiling.

  


They went quiet again, Andrew staring thoughtfully out across the river. Then he frowned. “Does this mean you see me as like, a son?”

  


“Ok maybe those words didn’t come out quite right,” Cameron admitted.

  


Andrew laughed, and this time it was a lot less strained. Then he sighed heavily and glared down at his fishing rod. “Ok, this is completely futile. We should go back to camp.”

  
“Aw come on, just a little longer,” Cameron said. “I’ll make a deal with you; if you still haven’t caught anything after 15 minutes, I’ll jump into the river.”

  


“Fully clothed?” Andrew raised his eyebrows skeptically. “You'll be cold all day.”

  


“Fully clothed.”

  


Andrew gave a slow grin. “Alright, you're on.” He sat back up and started tying another length of cord onto his rod.

  


_Good, he's smiling again,_ Cameron thought, satisfied.

 

_ ~ _

 

When they returned to camp, Cameron was soaking wet and Andrew was in good spirits. 

  


Megan rolled her eyes at them as soon as they walked up. “What have you two- no, you know what? I don't want to know. Just tell me you actually managed to catch some fish this time.”

  


Cameron grinned sheepishly, and held up the two undersized fish he'd managed to get. “Um, they weren't really biting today.” And they had spent more time goofing off than really fishing, but she didn't need to know that.

  


Megan sighed, and took the fish from him. “Well, thanks anyway.”

  


“The digimon aren't back yet?” Andrew asked, looking around the makeshift camp they'd set up last night. They were really roughing it now, trying to survive with two ratty tents and whatever they could find to make fires out of.

 

Cameron just hoped the weather stayed nice. They  _ really _ didn't need rain right now. 

  


“They're still foraging,” Megan said.

  


“Yeah, and they're much better at it than us,” Cameron pointed out. “So why do we have to keep trying to get food instead of having them do it for us?”

  


“Because A, it wouldn't be fair to rely on them for everything,” Megan said, ticking off the point on her index finger, “and B, we all have to learn to take care of ourselves in case something happens and we get split up.”

  


Andrew shuddered. “Don't even say that.”

  


“Anyway, come help me clean these,” Megan continued. “Cammie, go help Eleena start the fire.”

  


Cameron tensed. “You're seriously gonna make me work with  _ her _ ?”

  


Megan scowled at him. “Oh I'm sorry, I wasn't aware that this was preschool and I had to keep the squabbling babies separated. You have to learn to get along, we're all on the same team now.”

  


Cameron opened his mouth to protest, but Andrew tugged on his sleeve. “You know it's useless to argue with her,” he said sensibly. “And the faster we get done, the faster we get to eat.”

  


Cameron sighed. “I hate it when you're right,” he mumbled, but obediently walked off to go help with the fire.

  


It had been almost a week since their fight with Eleena and Neodevimon, and a lot had changed in that short span of time. They had gone from fighting glitchmon for Vega to striking off into the wilderness on their own, with no real idea where they were going, or what they were supposed to be doing. 

  


Also, Eleena-  the girl who had very recently tried to  _ kill them all _ \- had joined their team. 

 

That was entirely Megan's idea. Cameron had been against it from the beginning, but she had refused to even listen to his complaints, and unfortunately Desoto and even Andrew had backed her up.

 

Cameron didn't understand why they wanted to bring her into their group. I mean, he hadn't wanted to kill her or her digimon just because Vega told him to, but that didn't mean he wanted her anywhere near him.

  


He didn't trust her.  He was half afraid she'd murder them all in their sleep, and he'd vowed to keep a close eye on her as they traveled.

 

But due to his 'attitude', Megan had decided the two of them needed to learn how to 'get along' or some bullshit. Yeah, he didn't think  _ either _ of them were thrilled over the idea .

 

Nevertheless, in the interest of keeping peace with Megan, he walked over and knelt down by where Eleena was making a complete mess of the fire.

  


“Yeah, that's not gonna work,” he said, eyeing the haphazard way she'd stacked up the sticks and twigs. “If you stack all the big logs on top, it'll suffocate the flames.”

  


She glared up at him. “Did I ASK?”

  


He gritted his teeth. _Play nice, play nice_ , he chanted in his head. “No, but I just want to get this thing built so we can eat dinner soon.”

  


He reached in to rearrange the logs, and she growled at him. Like, actually  _ growled,  _ like a n angry dog . He stared at her, pulling his hand back slightly.

  


She was holding her sleeping digimon partner against her chest (Kiimon had evolved to its “In-Training” level,  Yaamon, a few days ago-  which  was  basically just a larger and grouchier version of its baby form. It still spent most of it's time asleep, still recovering from  it's ordeal .) and staring up at him with  narrowed, mistrustful eyes. “I can do this  _ myself _ . Back  _ off. _ ”

  


“Whoa, touchy, touchy,” he said, using humour to mask how much she'd freaked him out. “No need to bite my head off. Seriously, I'm just here to help.”

  


“Go help someone else,” she snapped, turning back to the fire and prodding at it uselessly.

  


He bit back a frustrated groan.  “ This is my  _ job _ .”

  


“Says who?”

  


“Says- well, Megan,” he said awkwardly.

  


“And you just let her tell you what to do, huh?” She rolled her eyes. “I didn't _think_ you were capable of thinking for yourself.”

  


Ok, he was starting to get a little mad. “Well, you didn't exactly protest when she started dragging _you_ around.”

  


She bristled- again, hunching herself up just like a dog  ready to bite \- and he started to think that maybe he'd  gotten in over his head.  He'd seen her fight Megan before, and it hadn't been pretty. The only reason he'd been able t o stop them was by taking her by surprise , and she'd still left nasty red welts all over his arms from her claws-er, fingernails.

  


Still, he didn't want her to think he was some kind of coward. He stood his ground, staring right at her. “Well? You wanna do something about it?”

  


She began to shake, he chest swelling with breath and her shoulders arching up. Any second, he thought, she was going to jump at him.

  


But just then, they were interrupted by a cheerful voice calling out, “We're baaack!” 

 

Cameron turned to see the digimon trooping back to camp through the trees, their arms full of fruit and vegetables they'd scavenged from the forest. Gabumon led the way, looking pleased with himself. “Hey Cammie! We brought back all kinds of stuff.”

  


He deflated. If Megan and the others had caught him fighting with Eleena, they would have disapproved, but if _Gabumon_ saw him, he'd get that sad, 'I'm not angry I'm just disappointed' look from his partner for _weeks_ and he wouldn't be able to stand it.

  


So he straightened up, brushing bits of dirt and dead leaves off his knees. “Whatever, just make the damn fire,” he spat at her, then he walked off to greet the returning digimon. 

 

 _If Megan wants to keep that jerk around, I won't stop her, but I_ refuse _to treat her like she's one of us,_ he thought bitterly.

  


~

  


Eleena's watched closely as Cameron walked away, clutching Yaamon to her chest. When she made sure he was engrossed in a happy conversation with Gabumon, she let out a breath, letting her shoulders relax.

  


She had come so close to jumping him, partly out of anger, and partly out of the fear that he would jump first. One thing she'd learned from many schoolyard fights; if you strike first, you had the advantage.

 

(Well, the teachers didn't like it. But they never believed her even when she _didn't_ start the fights, and she preferred detention to being beaten black and blue every day.)

  


Out of all of the  Chosen Children , she hated Cameron the most. Andrew and Desoto mostly ignored her, and Megan was  _ irritating _ , but every time Cameron so much as looked at her, she could tell he didn't like her, and wanted her to know it.

 

Plainly speaking, he scared her. She  _ hated _ herself for  that fear, but  he did. 

 

She had known boys like him back in the real world. Tall,  muscular, handsome .  Overconfident. He was probably popular, probably on some sports team, probably traveled around with a pack of other boys, looking for trouble.

 

Those were the type of boys that always came after her. Not ones  l ike Andrew or Desoto; they were too soft, too  _ different _ . they would have been outcasts like her, freaks. 

 

I t would come to a fight between them one day, and if she was being honest with herself, she dreaded it. He was bigger than her and stronger than her, he would likely win. And the other chosen Children would inevitably side with him. 

 

He'd drive her away, and she would be alone again.

  


_Why do I care, anyway?_ she wondered, vaguely disgusted at herself. _If you hate these kids so much, why does the thought of them leaving you behind hurt?_

  


She shook her head. Now wasn't the time for getting lost in her own thoughts. She turned her attention back to the problem at hand- starting a fire for supper.

  


…  She had no  _ earthly _ idea how to start a fire . She  poked at the haphazard pile of sticks and logs she'd stacked up,  frowning worriedly.

  


Suddenly, she got an idea. “Yaamon,” she whispered in her digimon's long, floppy ear. “Yaamon, wake up!”

  


“Mrghh,” it grumbled, shifting in her arms. “Why? I was havin' a nice dream...”

  


“You can create fire, right? Light this up for me,” she hissed.

  


“Light it yourself,” it said, and its eyes started drifting shut again. 

  


She glared at it.  “ I don't know  _ how!” _

  


“Then ask one of the humans for help,” it grumbled. “I can't believe you woke me up for this.”

  


She bit her lip. “I- I don't want them to _know_ I don't know how,” she admitted grudgingly.

  


“Seriously?” Yaamon scoffed derisively. “Well, I _might_ be willing to help you out... if you apologize for waking me up so _rudely_.”

  


Eleena's first instinct was to drop-kick her useless hackey-sack of a digimon, but she caught a hold of her temper. “I- I'm sorry. Will you do it now?”

  


“Hmm, I think there's a special word missing from that sentence...” Yaamon was obviously milking the situation for its own amusement by this point. 

  


She bit her tongue;  it was worth humoring the little git if it meant she got what she wanted. “...  _ please _ ?”

  


Yaamon looked up at her, considering. Then it closed its eyes. “Nope, not sincere enough. I'm going back to sleep.” And it turned over in her lap and started snoring loudly.

  


She could _feel_ herself turning red with anger. “You _little-!”_

  


“Having fun over here?”

  


She jumped and whirled, looking up to see Megan standing over her, wearing that big, guileless grin of hers that Eleena found more than a little unnerving.

  


“I'm sorry about Cameron,” Megan said, crouching down on the other side of the firepit. “I wanted the two of you to learn to get along, but... I think he might be the type to hold grudges.”

  


They looked over to where Cameron was hanging out with the other boys and their digimon, preparing the food they had scavenged. He was laughing at something Desoto said.

  


“And you _don't_ hold grudges,” Eleena said cautiously.

  


Megan laughed too loudly, making Eleena wince. “Nope! Never. I honestly don't see the point.”

  


Eleena just stared at her,  bewildered .  _ How does someone like you even  _ exist _ ?  _ she wondered.

  


“Now here, I'll show you how to make a proper Paul-style bonfire,” Megan said, sitting down and reaching into the firewood, rearranging Eleena's haphazard design.

  


“... I was going just fine without your help,” Eleena grumbled.

  


“I know,” Megan said. “But I like setting stuff on fire. Hand me the flint, will you?”

  


She built a nice, hot fire, explaining each step in such a casual way that it took Eleena a while to realize that this was her way of teaching her how to do it without wounding her pride.

  


Eleena wanted to be angry at being 'handled' like this, but honestly, she appreciated it. She was used to being made fun of or yelled at when she didn't know something; it was... nice, to have someone who didn't act like she was useless.

  


_Why are you so nice to me?_ She wanted to ask. But she wasn't ready to admit that she noticed or cared how Megan was treating her.

  


When it came time to cook the food, Eleena walked away, sitting on a fallen log at the edge of camp. She watched the other Chosen Children talk and joke around together as they prepared the meal, and couldn't even begin to understand her own feelings

  


_It's better this way. Better to be alone._ she told herself firmly.

  


Yaamon snorted and shifted in her lap. She looked down at it, and allowed herself the tiniest of fond smiles.  _ Well... not totally alone. _

  


All at once, the hairs on the back of her neck stood up, and she looked around nervously. Had she just… heard something in the woods?

  


Yaamon stirred in her lap. “Mm, quit moving, I'm tryin' to sleep...”

 

“Something's wrong,” Eleena muttered. 

 

“What?” Yaamon sat up, a little more alert now.

  


“ I'm not sure,” Eleena  said, turning her head from side to side. She could  _ swear _ she'd heard something.

 

“What's wrong?” Megan called to her from by the fire.

  


“I- I'm not sure,” she said, goosebumps forming all up and down her arms. “I just... I think we should leave. I've got a bad feeling about this place.”

  


Andrew snorted. “OK, Fiver.”

  


“Oh come on, the food's almost ready!” Cameron said. “Are we seriously supposed to pick up camp and leave just because-”

  


“Shh, wait! I think I hear something,” Lopmon interrupted him, its ears perking up.

  


All of them went silent, listening hard for whatever Lopmon was picking up on.

  


Faintly, the sound came more distinctly to Eleena's ears too. A thumping, jingling sound, like... like irregular, dragging footsteps. 

 

“Whatever it is, it's coming this way,” she said,  standing up and walking back into the ring of camp. 

 

“Should we evolve?” Agumon asked nervously.

  


“We don't know if it's a threat,” Megan said.

  


“What in this godforsaken world _hasn't_ been a threat so far?” Andrew argued, crossing his arms. He looked scared, despite his angry tone.

  


“We need to get out of here!” Eleena hissed. What were they doing? Why weren't they _running_ already? Did they all have death wishes?!

 

“No,” Cameron said stubbornly. “If it's a Glitchmon, we can handle it.”

 

“What if it's not a glitchmon?” Desoto said nervously. “It could be something worse.

 

The argument came to a halt when the source of the noise became very apparent. Out of the forest, a tall, strangely formed figure came into view, headed towards them. 

 

It was like a giant doll. It's body was the color of clay and there were no recognizable features on it's oblong head. Every time one of it's massive, hoof-like feet hit the ground, it make a resonating, jingly noise.

  


“What the hell is that?” Cameron murmured.

  


“Bad news,” Eleena hissed. She crouched down, wanting to run- but if these idiots were going to stand their ground, she didn't want to seem weak.

 

Yaamon jumped down from her arms, it's fur bristling out in all directions. It growled, a high-pitched, adorable, but deadly serious sound.

 

It was… trying to protect her, even like this. For a second, she was distracted by the still-fresh feelings of fond confusion over how much digimon  _ cared _ for her.

 

God, if something happened to it- she'd never be able to forgive herself.

  


“Is it a digimon?” Megan asked, completely oblivious to the emotional turmoil Eleena was going through. 

  


“Not any _I've_ ever seen,” replied Agumon, sounding worried.

  


Eleena held up her digivice to check the creature, like Megan had shown her how to a few days ago, but all that appeared on the screen was a long series of question marks.

  


“It doesn't look like a glitchmon,” Andrew said. “It's too… solid.”

  


It came to a halt in front of them, swaying slightly. It didn't look very well put-together, whatever it was. It looked like someone's half-finished art project.

  


To Eleena's shock, Megan walked right up to it. “Er... hello. Are you a friend or an enemy?”

  


“Is she seriously just _asking_ it?” Eleena muttered, incredulous.

  


“Well, how else is she gonna find out?” Agumon replied quietly. 

 

“ _Megan you stay away from that thing!_ ” Andrew hissed, but his sister ignored him. 

  


The doll tilted its head down, like it was looking at her, considering her. For a moment, the two stayed like that, staring at each other.

  


Then its hand shot out, and Megan barely dodged out of the way before it could snatch her up. Its fingers crashed into the ground, leaving deep grooves in the dirt.

  


“ Enemy!  _ Enemy! _ ”  Megan yelled as she ran back towards the  rest of them .

  


Yaamon jumped forwards. There was a flash of light, and as it faded, Impmon was there, fists held up, ready for battle. “Eleena, stay behind me!” it called at her.

  


All around her, the others digimon were evolving into their Champion forms. Greymon and Garurumon took point, snarling at the unknown enemy.

  


Every part of Eleena was screaming at her to run- but she refused to abandon Impmon. So she stood her ground, ready to physically fight the doll herself if that was what it came down to to protect her digimon.

 

_ Is that was loving people means? Becoming a complete idiot? _ She thought dourly.  _ If so, I almost wished I'd stayed empty. _


	13. Episode 13- Relics of the past

Andrew cowered behind Turuiemon as the doll-like creature advanced on them. _Not again,_ was all he could think, shaking with fear. Hadn’t they been through enough?

  


Greymon was the first to attack, charging forward with a roar. He caught the doll's arm in his jaws and pulled up sharply, snapping the limb in two.

 

The doll didn't seem to care about losing half it's arm; it swiveled its head right around like an owl, and a hatch opened up in its face like a nutcracker's mouth. 

 

A beam of light shot out of the hatch and hit Greymon square in the chest. There was a flash, and Agumon dropped to the forest floor, bewildered.

 

“Hey, w-wait a second!” Agumon squealed, scrambling back towards his partner. “That's cheating!”

  


The doll advanced on him quickly, it's remaining arm stretching out to grab him, but Turuiemon jumped in between them.

 

“ _Ninjiken!_ ” he yelled, leaping up to drive his fist into the doll's torso. The plating of its skin shattered, leaving a gaping hole in it's chest.

 

But the injury hardly even slowed it down. It took advantage of Turuiemon's proximity to hit him with that same beam it had used of Greymon, making him de-evolve.

 

It snatched him out of the air, and Andrew choked on a scream of fear. What was it going to do with his digimon?!

 

They didn't get to find out, however, because at just that moment, Garurumon jumped on its back and ripped its head clear off.

 

It stood there for a moment, sparks flying out of its neck, Lopmon still clutched in its hand. Then, it slowly began falling to the side.

 

“Lemme down, lemme down!” Lopmon shrieked. He just barely managed to wriggle out of its fingers and jump down before the doll's ravaged body fell to the ground with a tree-shaking _crash._

 

Andrew rushed towards his partner. “Oh my god, are you alright?” He dropped to his knees and patted Lopmon down, looking for injuries. “Are you hurt?!”

 

“Nothing but my pride,” Lopmon replied sourly, rubbing at his tail. 

 

Cameron raced forward to meet Garurumon, who de-evolved and all but fell into his arms. “ Jesus, buddy, that was  _ amazing _ .”

 

“ I ripped it's  _ head _ off , ”  Gabumon muttered,  sounding a little shellshocked. “It tasted awful.”

 

“ Thanks for like, saving my life there, buddy,” Lopmon said.

 

“No problem,” Gabumon replied faintly. “Thanks for saving Agumon.”

 

“I didn't need saving! I was doing just fine!” Agumon growled, crossing his arms.

 

“Shut up, Agumon,” Lopmon said matter-of-factly. Then he turned to Impmon, who's fur was all standing up like an angry cat. “And thank  _ you _ for a fat lot of nothing.”

 

“Hey, I'm still tired!” Impmon protested. “Just going rookie  nearly killed me.”

 

“Wimp,” Agumon said, sticking his tongue out.

  


“ Ok, seriously, what the  _ hell  _ was that?” Megan asked,  approaching the wrecked doll . She walked towards one of its arms, raised her foot like she was going to kick it- then seemed to change her mind, backing off with a look of disgust.

  


“Whatever it was, who wants to bet that Vega sent it after us?” Andrew said glumly.

  


Next to him, Lopmon nodded. “But I didn't get the feeling it was trying to kill us- maybe it was trying to capture us?”

  


“That would make sense,” Andrew said. “Maybe he wants us back at the temple.”

  


“Or maybe it just wanted our digimon weakened before it tried to take us out,” Eleena said grimly.

  


“Well, that didn’t work out too well for it, did it?” Lopmon pointed out, gesturing to the cheerily burning wreckage of it's body. 

 

Andrew pulled a face.  “I really hope that doesn't burn the whole forest down.”

 

“Smokey would be so disappointed,” Megan quipped. 

 

He rolled his eyes.

 

“ Maybe it was just after  _ her _ .” Cameron jerked his thumb at Eleena with a glare. “If we ditch her, we probably won’t have to worry about it anymore.”

  


She glared right back. “Like you need to give me any more reasons to leave,” she snapped.

  


“Ok guys, break it up.” Megan stepped between them, clapping her hands sharply like a schoolteacher. “No one’s leaving and no one’s getting ditched. We don’t know _what_ that thing is, or where it came from- although Vega is a good bet. All we need to do now is keep moving, in case there are _more_ of them on the way.”

  


“...You’re probably right,” Cameron said grudgingly. 

  


“Of course I am. But first- we didn’t put all that work into supper for nothing,” she said, with a little smile. “Let’s eat, then head out.”

  


Everyone laughed a little at that, and Andrew smiled despite himself. “Feast, then flee?”

  


“Well, you can’t expect anyone to run away on an empty stomach.” She winked at him.

  


They ate quickly, though, and Andrew’s stomach was tied up in knots. He wished they could have gone longer before the next disaster happened, but honestly, they should have expected something like this

  


_When will it end?_ he wondered. _Will there come a point where we beat everything and we get to go home? Or are the enemies just going to keep getting harder and harder until we finally get defeated?_

  


After dinner, they cleaned up camp. Cameron and Gabumon were dousing the fire, Desoto and Patamon were packing up, and Eleeena and Impmon were throwing sand over the remains of the doll so it didn't end upcausing a forest fire.

 

He paired up with Megan on tearing the tents down so he could talk to her alone. “Hey, you know how Vega said we could go home once we defeated the Glitch?” he asked.

  


“Yeh?” Megan replied distractedly, a mallet clenched in her teeth as she pulled tent-stakes up. 

  


Andrew rubbed the back of his neck. “...Now that we’re not- _working_ for him anymore.. how are we gonna get home?”

  


Megan spat out the mallet, her eyes widening in shock. She knelt there for a moment, staring silently at the ground.

 

“Um… Megan?” he asked, worried. Had he scared her? “What-”

  


She jumped to her feet and grabbed Andrew, squeezing him in a hug so fierce there was no room for breath. “We’re going to get home, ok?”

  


“Gah- urgh- can’t breathe-!” he gasped out. 

  


She relaxed her hold on him a little and leaned up, staring up at him with blazing eyes. “We’ll just take the Glitch down, right? The only thing we didn’t want to do was hurt Eleena, right?”

  


“R-right.” Her intensity was scaring him a little. 

  


She stood up and started pacing around. “Vega might be pissed at us, but if we destroy the Glitch, he’ll have to admit we were good for _something_ , and then he’ll let us go home. He’ll _have_ to. Because if he _doesn’t-!”_ Her hands balled into fists, and she started shaking.

  


Andrew put a hand on her shoulder, alarmed and hoping to calm her down before she started having a panic attack or something. “Of course he will. And then we’ll get to go home.”

  


She looked at him, a flash of vulnerable fear crossing her face. Then, slowly, she released a shaky breath and straightened up, smiling cheerfully like she hadn't almost flown off the handle. “Of course.”

  


He let out a little huff of breath, relieved that she wasn't panicking- not externally, at least.

  


She hugged him one last time, pressing her cheek into his chest. Then she pulled back and patted him briskly on the shoulder. “Now, go help De pack up our clothes. I'll finish the tents by myself.”

  


“Sure,” he said, not sure whether their talk had made him feel any better or not.

  


~

 

I t felt like they had been walking for  _ hours.  _ Well _ \-  _ technically, it probably  _ had _ been, since the sun was  beginning to sink behind the trees before them, forcing him to squint against it's intense orange glare. 

 

Patamon had eventually gotten tired of flying and come to rest on Desoto’s shoulder.  He was kinda heavy, but Desoto didn't mind helping him out. He was dozing now, soft little snores tickling against his human's ear.

  


Desoto was lagging behind the others a little; he didn’t want to admit how tired he was, or how much his feet hurt, because he knew _everyone_ was exhausted, and he shouldn’t complain. But it was hard to keep up when every step felt like he was dragging a 16 ton weight behind him.

  


He didn’t realize how far he'd fallen behind the main group until he looked up and realized he was being passed by Eleena and Impmon, who always walked behind everyone else.

 

He jogged a bit to catch up with them, watching Eleena out of the corner of his eyes. Truth be told, he was curious about her; he wanted to know how she'd gotten to the digital world, and how she'd got mixed up with the Glitch. 

 

He knew Cameron and Andrew were still mad at her, and he understood why- she _had_ tried to kill them, after all. 

 

But, well… she honestly didn't seem like that bad of a person, now that she was out from under the influence of the Glitch, and Desoto didn't see the point in holding a grudge.

 

But he was a little too intimidated to ask any of the questions that popped into his head; he kept opening his mouth and then closing it stupidly, unsure of what words he should use.

  


So he was shocked then when _she_ finally broke the silence. “So, why doesn’t that one evolve?”

  


He looked up at her, suprised and a little unnerved; her pale-brown, almost amber eyes were a bit eerie when they focused right on him like that.

  


It took him a second to realize she was talking about Patamon. “They- they just don’t like to,” he said lamely,  looking sideways at the sleeping digimon on his shoulder . “And they did evolve, once. To fight… er…” he  realized it  probably wouldn't be smart to bring up Neodevimon right now,  so he just trailed off.

  


“But it could have evolved to fight that doll thing back there,” Eleena pointed out. “It’s powerful enough, it probably could have taken it out with one hit.”

  


Desoto shrugged. “Patamon didn’t want to. I didn’t want to force them.”

  


Eleena was frowning at him  now . He didn’t know what he’d done wrong, but apparently it had been  _ something _ , so he hurried to change the subject. “W-why do you call Digimon ‘It’ all the time? That seems rude.”

  


“ Well, it’s not like they’re  _ people _ ,” Eleena said-  not like, scornfully, just in a very matter-of-fact tone . “ T hey’re just things.”

  


“Hey!” Impmon snapped. “What was that?”

  


“ They’re not  _ things, _ ”  Desoto protested. “Why would you say that?  T hat’s horrible!”

  


“I’m not trying to be rude, it’s just the facts,” Eleena said. “I mean, it’s just a collection of data that happens to look like an animal. What else should I call it?”

  


“ You could try  _ asking _ ,” Impmon said crossly.

  


Eleena clicked her tongue, looking exasperated. “Ok, fine. What _are_ you? Should I call you ‘it’ or ‘he’ or what?”

  


“Well, I mean… ‘it’ is fine, actually,” Impmon said awkwardly. “That's what I've always been. Or he, or whatever, I'm not picky. But I’m not a _thing_!”

  


“No, you’re not,” Eleena said. “You’re an annoying little brat.”

  


“Hey!” 

  


Desoto watched in amazement as Eleena laughed- actually outright  _ laughed _ , all delighted and carefree,  dodging out of the way as Impmon tried to punch her in the leg.  Her hair kind of swirled around her, catching red  in the  light of the setting son.

 

He couldn't stop a smile from spreading across his face. “So, you CAN laugh,” he said teasingly, before he could think better of it.

 

She whipped her head around to stare at him, and his heart stopped. For a second, he was terrified that she was going to clock him.

 

Then she snorted. “I'm not a robot. Despite my own best efforts, I do have feelings.”

 

“Ah- well, I didn't mean...” Desoto rubbed the back of his head, chuckling nervously. “I was just surprised.”

 

“Huh.” She kind of cocked her head to the side, pulling her hair back over her shoulders. “Well… I was surprised that your digimon could fight the way it- they- did. They're impressive.”

 

“They're full of surprises,” Desoto said fondly.

 

“Look-” Eleena stopped in her tracks and turned to him. This time, she wouldn't quite meet his eyes. “I'm sorry. About- about attacking you, ok?”

 

He stared at her, speechless. Of all the things he'd expected her to say, an apology was NOT high on the list.

 

“I'm not- I don't think I'm any kind of saint,” she said. “It's not I'm not still interested in… revenge.” A shadow passed over her face. “But- you didn't deserve to get caught up in it. And I'm sorry.”

 

It took his a while to find his words. But he was starting to get a feeling of…. Why she was the way she was. 

 

As soon as any of them showed her the littlest bit of kind n ess- Impmon had probably been the first, and he knew Megan had made a real effort- she  seemed to loosen up, uncoiling from the vicious, aloof persona she always projected.

 

He could only imagine what had happened to make her so angry and lonely that she would feel the need to  _ act _ like that.  She'd probably been through a lot of pain in her life.

 

So he smiled at her. “Thanks. I'm glad we're both ok now.”

 

She looked a little surprised, again. But before the conversation could go any further, Impmon interrupted them.

 

“I cannot believe my  _ ears _ ,” he said loudly, leaning around Eleena's legs, a wicked grin on his little face. “A genuine, heartfelt apology from the ice queen herself!”

 

Immediately, Eleena went from awkwardly civil to boiling with rage. “I swear to  _ god _ , Impmon-”

 

“Oh, I wub my new fwiends!” Impmon mocked her with a high-pitched voice, clasping his hands together and making kissy lips. “It's so pwecious!”

 

“I will END you, you impertinent sock monkey!” Eleena snarled.

  


“Oi! Slowpokes!” Megan shouted at them from a lot further up the trail.  “Keep up, we don’t have all day!”

 

“I'm gonna go tell her about your miraculous change of heart!” Impmon kicked up his heels in delight and went racing off to catch up with the rest of the Chosen Children.

 

“DON'T YOU DARE!” Eleena shrieked, leaving Desoto behind to watch them in a mixture of alarm and amusement.

 

He followed her back up the trail, shaking his head and laughing fondly under his breath. He still didn't quite 'get' her… but he had hopes that one day, they might be able to be friends. 

 

~

  


_Lopmon was sitting in a sea of flowers._

 

_A light breeze blew them back and forth around him, tickling gently against his fur. In the distance, low-flying clouds scutted along the high hills, and farther than that, he could just barely catch a glimpse of the sea._

 

_It was… peaceful._

 

_Peaceful, and lonely._

 

“ _Aww, why are you sitting up here by yourself?”_

 

_He turned-_

 

_***_

 

_*******************************_

 

_ **** sighed and sat down next to him. “Lopmon, don't shut me out. I care about you.” _

  


“Psst, Lopmon! Wake up, buddy!”

  


Slowly, Lopmon opened his eyes to see Andrew leaning over him, a sheepish look on his face.

  


He groaned and covered his face with his paws. “Seriously? I don’t even get to _sleep_ now?”

  


“Sorry,” Andrew whispered, darting a glance at the still-sleeping humans and digimon on the other side of the tent.. “I know it’s early, but don’t blame me. Megan wanted one of us to scout around before we set off today, and your champion form _is_ the fastest and least conspicuous, so…”

  


Lopmon groaned again, rolling over. “Ok just- just give me a second, ok?”

  


“Don’t fall back asleep.” Andrew hissed.

  


“I won’t.”

  


He heard Andrew  sidle out of the tent that they shared with Gabumon, Patamon and their partners. Agumon, Impmon, Megan and Eleena slept in the tent pitched next to theirs.  They all used to sleep together in one tent when they went on missions for Vega , but ever since Eleena joined their party Megan had insisted they be separated by “gender”, which was one of those weird human concepts that Lopmon didn’t  really  understand.

  


He snuggled down into his  sleeping bag and sighed.  _ That same dream again _ , he thought,  frustrated.

  


It had been playing over and over again every night for weeks; a meadow filled with flowers, and someone there with him he couldn't quite remember. It was driving him to distraction.

  


It must have been one of the memories that Vega had wiped, (Lopmon figured, anyway; since Vega had betrayed them on so many other levels, there was no reason to think he hadn't lied to them about the whole 'oh I implanted memories into your heads' deal, too.)

 

Lopmon assumed that the rest of his memories would come back with time- he had to assume that. The alternative was too depressing to bear.

  


Eventually, he forced himself get up, stifling a yawn. He padded out of the tent and into the pale early morning sunlight, his ears dragging on the ground behind him.

  


Andrew was waiting for him outside “Here, have some breakfast,” he said, and tossed Lopmon an apple.

  


Lopmon caught it, and saw that Andrew was munching on one, too. “I thought you hated apples?” he said, taking a bite out of the crunchy red fruit.

  


“Yes, because they make me feel sick. But I already feel sick from getting up at the crack of dawn, so hey, it’s not like I can possibly feel worse, right?” Andrew gave him a wide, off-kilter grin.

  


Lopmon raised an eyebrow at him, and continued eating his breakfast. Andrew's sense of humour was… a little weird.

  


Sometimes, he felt like he was the only one of the Chosen Digimon who didn’t entirely connect with his human partner. Patamon and Desoto were joined at the hip, Agumon and Megan were... _frighteningly_ similar, and while Gabumon was shy and had a hard time making friends, Cameron had such a warm, friendly presence that he naturally coaxed him right out of his shell.

  


He supposed Impmon and Eleena weren’t in perfect harmony; they argued all the time, and hardly spoke to each other otherwise. But they still seemed to _understand_ each other very well. There was an obvious sense of mutual respect in their relationship.

  


Lopmon  _ liked _ Andrew, he honestly did, but that didn't mean he  _ understood _ him at all. He was pretty friendly to his digimon- much  more so than when he first arrived in the Digital World \- but it was like- he wanted to keep him at arm's length at all times.

 

(Emotionally, at least. He tended to hug and cuddle him so often that Lopmon sometimes wondered  if he thought he was some kind of stuffed toy.)

 

The only time he really felt like he'd seen Andrew's honest self was before they fought the flying Glitchmon, before Lopmon evolved for the first time. After that, he thought maybe they would start getting closer… but it never quite happened.

  


Well- no, that was being unfair. It wasn’t like they had a bad relationship or anything. When they worked together, they made a good team. 

 

And Andrew had… done a lot for him, back when they were still working with Vega. He'd saved Lopmon's _life_ , for pity's sake. He even found himself enjoying Andrew’s company- when he wasn’t having one of his moody spells.

 

But they still didn't really feel like _partners_. There was still that distance between them that Lopmon didn't know how to cross.

  


He just wished he understood him better. 

 

 _I wish I understood_ anything _better_ , he thought glumly. From the inside of his own head, to the enemies he had to fight, his life right now was a confusing mess.

  


“Hey, Lopmon?” 

 

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Andrew’s soft, concerned voice.  He looked up to see his partner looking down at him with a little frown.  “Are you ok?”  he asked.

  


Lopmon realized that he had been staring at his apple for a few minutes, still chewing the same bite. He swallowed, then shoved the rest of it in his mouth, embarrassed. “‘m fine, less get thish over wifh,” he mumbled around the pulp.

  


Andrew bit his lip. “You know… you don’t have to, but- if something’s bothering you, you can talk to me about it. You know that, right?”

  


Lopmon swallowed uncomfortably- for more than one reason. After hitting himself on the chest a few times to make sure he wasn’t going to choke, he cleared his throat and replied. “Thanks, but seriously, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”

  


Andrew gave him a considering look, but didn’t press the point,  and Lopmon was confused all over again. Just when he started to think his partner didn't really care about building a relationship with him, he went and said something all  _ gooey _ like that.

  


He didn’t want to talk about any of the weird crap he was going through right now. It was all too confusing and painful, and he just got the feeling that if he tried to make sense of it, it would just hurt even more.

  


“Let’s go,” he said, spitting out apple seeds, and quickly evolved into Turuiemon. He wanted to get this over with so he could go back to bed, and maybe chase down the rest of his dream.

  


~

  


Andrew didn’t usually feel jealous of the other Chosen Children for their digimon partners, but right now, he really envied Megan and Cameron in particular for having champions that they could look cool while riding.

  


Clinging to Turuiemon’s shoulders piggyback style while he ran through the forest was a lot less impressive than sitting astride a dinosaur or a giant wolf. Also, he kept getting the urge to tell Yoda jokes, but he knew Turuiemon wouldn’t get them.

  


They had scouted the entire area in a two-mile radius, and Andrew was about ready to call it good enough and go home. They hadn’t found anything except a couple stray, shy digimon that ran off when they saw them coming, and a lot of trees.

  


Man, there sure were a lot of trees in this forest.

  


He was just starting to doze off against Turuiemon’s shoulder, thinking about how warm and comfortable he’d been in bed that morning, when his Digimon came to an abrupt halt. 

 

“Look up there,” He said quietly, pointing.

  


Andrew raised his head, blinking the sleep out of his eyes, and squinted in the direction Turuiemon was indicating. On the crest of a small hill in front of them was the crumbling remains of what looked like a big, old-fashioned warehouse.

  


“What the heck is that?” Andrew murmured, dropping down from Turuiemon’s back and shading his eyes to get a better look at the place.

  


It was made of grey stone, and in even worse shape than the temple had been when they first saw it. Ivy was strung all over the tumbledown walls like Christmas lights, and the metal frames of shattered windows were rusting in their fittings.

  


“Let’s go check it out,” Turuiemon said, starting to walk forward.

  


“Wait, wait.” Andrew grabbed at his arm to stop him. “What if something's hiding in there? Like, giants spiders, or ghosts? Or ghost-spiders?!” 

  


“ Then we gotta check it out and tell the others about it,” Turuiemon said  firmly .

  


Andrew groaned. “You’re right, and I hate it. Ok, let’s go check out the creepy ghost house.”

  


When they reached the building, they didn’t even have to look for a door, one of the walls had crumbled away, leaving a nice gaping hole for them to just walk right in. Andrew clung to Turuiemon's arm, walking a little behind him and darting his eyes back and forth nervously as they crossed the threshold. 

  


It wasn’t very big; just a one-room building with a roof that had half caved in. There were mouldering relics of wood furniture on the floor, but they had rotted away so severely that it was impossible to tell what they had been. Clouds of dust rose up around them as they walked inside.

 

“I'm probably gonna get infected by spores,” Andrew whispered, covering his mouth with his sleeve.

 

“Shh,” Turuiemon admonished him. 

  


Something flickered in the corner of Andrew’s eye. He looked up, and at first he thought it was a TV- a large screen displaying a rapid slide-show of images.

  


But as he got closer, he realized that it was an iron arch built up from the floor, and that the pictures he could see inside of it were slightly transparent. 

 

He let go of Turuiemon's arm and walked towards it, fascinated. “Hey, look at this!”

  


“ Oh, whoah! ” Turuiemon came up behind him. “ It's a teleporter.” 

  


It was taller than either of them, and the iron of the arch was carved into ornate patterns. Andrew realized after a moment that it was showing different locations; a long sandy beach, snow-capped mountains, grassy meadows, the middle of a forest. It changed on and on, presumably showing all the places it could take someone.

 

 

“That's cool,” he said, “But does it work? It kinda looks like it's on the fritz.”

 

Turuiemon shrugged, “I dunno. These things used to be all over to connect the different points of the world together and promote trade… but it looks like this station's been abandoned.”

 

“Hey, you remembered something!” Andrew said cheerfully. “That's a good sign, right?”

 

Turuiemon snorted. “Yeah, a history lesson. Super useful,” he said bitterly.

 

Andrew watched him for a moment. He'd though his partner seemed a little off this morning, and now he was sure of it “Hey… are you alright?”

 

“Well, if we don't know if it works, we should just leave it alone,” Turuiemon said briskly, ignoring him. “C'mon, we should go finish our patrol.”

 

He walked off, ending the conversation. Andrew sighed, and followed him.

 

Andrew had thought, after all that touchy-feely stuff when he evolved for the first time, Lopmon would start to open up to him. But he stayed as distant as ever- friendlier now, definitely, but still holding Andrew at arms-length.

 

It was… frustrating. He was obviously miserable about _something_ , but if he didn't tell Andrew anything about it, he couldn't help him.

 

Not that Andrew could even solve his _own_ problems. He had no right to butt in on someone else's.

 

_ He deserves a better partner than me, _ Andrew thought.  _Someone smart and strong who can support him when times are tough… not a wimpy kid with a broken brain like me_ .

 

He shook his head; he couldn't afford to get depressed right now, where his digimon could see him. He  could break down in private later.

 

Turuiemon stopped outside the building and crouched down to allow Andrew to scramble up onto his shoulders. 

 

He had just  gotten into place when they heard a scream in the distance.  Turuiemon looked over his shoulder and they locked eyes apprehensively.

  


Andrew gulped. “Is it too much to hope that was just Cameron being scared by a spider?”

  


He was answered by a dull crash that echoed from the same direction as the scream, followed by a huge plume of dust and fleeing birds, followed by a flash of blue fire.

  


Andrew groaned and rested his forehead against Turuiemon’s shoulder. “It goes against all my instincts to run _towards_ a fight, but...”

  


Turuiemon let out a short, grim huff of laughter at that. “Mine too. Let’s go.”


	14. Episode 14- Leap of Faith

Eleena and Impmon crouched behind a tree, both of them breathing hard and trying to stifle the noise of it. Eleena’s hands shook and her eyes darted back and forth across the clearing that had previously been their camp, and was now a battle zone.

  


They had been in the middle of breakfast when another one of those giant dolls had ambushed them. But this one wasn’t an awkward, clumsy thing like the first doll; it was sleek, fast moving, sure-footed, and _quiet-_ they hadn’t noticed it sneaking up on them until it was just _there_. 

  


Gabumon and Agumon had evolved immediately to fight it, but it hit Gabumon with that de-evolving beam before he had even reached his champion form.

 

Now it was fighting Greymon, and the ground shook as they circled each other, Greymon roaring and trying to capture it in his jaws, and the doll shooting beam after beam at him, trying to weaken him. 

  


Eleena hadn't waited for the battle to go south; as soon as she saw the doll, she'd grabbed Impmon and dived into the bushes. Impmon had complained a bit about missing the fight, but hadn't left her side.

  


She had to resist the urge to cover her ears against the sound of Greymon’s snarling and the yelling and shrieking of the Chosen Children. Her heart was pounding and every part of her body was urging her to run, run, run _now_ _._

  


Just then, she felt Impmon tugging on her sleeve. She looked down to see it looking up at her with big, worried eyes. “What- what should we do?” it whispered. “If Greymon falls, I need to evolve.”

  


She shook her head. “No, we're not fighting anymore; we need to get out of here.”

  


Impmon  blinked at her, and she wondered if it was going to start arguing. But then it just nodded. “ We can sneak off while that thing is distracted.”

 

She was almost disappointed; she sort of thought he'd argue with her. She felt… almost guilty for leaving the Chosen Children alone to deal with that thing.

 

But in the end, it didn't matter. Her life, and Impmon's- that was all that mattered. 

 

They were better off alone. 

  


Eleena stood up, and prepared to run- but before she could move, she heard a piercing, horrified scream from the clearing.

  


“AGUMON, NO!” Megan’s voice, wailing in rage and despair, was unmistakeable. Eleena peered up through the brush to see the doll standing over herm, holding Agumon's little orange body wriggling in its fist.

  


“I- I'm so sorry, Megan…” her digimon choked out, struggling uselessly. “I wasn’t strong enough to protect you.”

  


Megan’s face turned red, furious tears tracking down her face. She ran forward, shoving Cameron out of the way when he tried to hold her back. 

  


She rushed at the doll, holding up her fists like she thought she could wrestle with a two-story robot made out of clay and steel. “PUT HIM DOWN!” she screamed. “DROP HIM, DROP HIM YOU USELESS PIECE OF-!”

  


In one swift move, the doll lashed its free hand out and snatched her up, squeezing her body tightly. She squirmed and howled in its grip, fighting to get free.

  


The doll straightened up. It turned, and began to walk away slowly- unhurried, as if it knew nothing would dare to chase after it. Desoto was holding Patamon and staring after it, horrified; Cameron had crawled over to Gabumon's body, which was laid out, unmoving, on the forest floor.

  


“E-Eleena?” Impmon’s voice was unusually timid as it reached her ears. “Are you ok?”

  


It took her a second to realize that her whole body was trembling violently; that she was gripping a branch so hard it was beginning to crack under her fingers.

  


It took her a few seconds to realize this was because she was  _ mad. _

  


Why? Why did she care about what happened to that girl? Why was she so mad about that _thing_ taking her away, to do who knows what to her? Why did she want to scream with rage because those _useless_ boys weren't doing anything to try and get her back?!

  


Why was it that all she could think of was the cut of Megan’s carefree smile as she stared up at her, fearless and confident?

  


_ You're like us, aren't you? _

  


_ You’ll understand later. _

  


“Well? Are we gonna run or not?” Impmon asked impatiently.

  


“Change of plan,” she hissed. “We’re gonna kick it’s ass.” And she got to her feet, hurdled the bushed in front of her, and ran back into the clearing. 

 

Impmon yelped indignantly behind her. “Hey, wait for me!”

  


Desoto and Cameron stared at her as  she bolted past them and ran after the doll. She ignored them, pulling out her digivice and holding it  up  high.  “ LET. HER.  _ GO! _ ”  she snarled, and a blinding light burst forth from her outstretched hand.

  


She felt a rush of air as Devimon leapt over  her  head .  It landed in front of the doll with a growl, its wings half furled. “ _ Razor Wing! _ ”

  


The doll easily evaded its attack, and sent out a beam of de-evolution light that Devimon had to jump into the air to avoid. It took flight and wheeled overhead, looking for an opening. 

 

It sent another attack that hit the doll dead on, but once the smoke cleared, the thing was still standing, completely undamaged.

  


“BE CAREFUL!” Eleena shouted at Devimon. “You might hit Megan and Agumon!” 

 

She gritted her teeth, suddenly nervous . Her digimon’s most powerful attack hadn’t even phased the doll; how were they supposed to beat it?

  


Just then, she caught sight of Megan’s face as she squirmed and thrashed in the doll’s grip.  A s soon as their eyes met,  Megan stilled, and her whole face lit up in a brilliant smile ; a look that seemed to say,  _ I knew you wouldn’t abandon me _ . 

  


Emotion hit Eleena with the force of a runway train; something warm and intense, something that made her think she would burn down the whole goddamn world to save Megan. 

 

 _What the hell is this?_ she thought, shocked and a little scared by the intensity of her own feelings. _I've never felt this way about another human before..._

  


Between the unfamiliar emotions and watching the battle, she was a little distracted, so it took her a few moments to realize her hand was glowing again. 

 

But when she looked down, it wasn’t her digivice giving off light; it was the strange little heart-shaped charm hanging from it, emitting a steady red glow.

  


She looked up to see that Devimon’s form was flickering and changing; for a second, her heart stopped. Was something wrong? Was it going corrupted again?!

  


It was engulfed in the same  red light coming off her charm, and as her heart re-started, Eleena realized that it was evolving.  _ Wait- it can evolve beyond Champion all on it’s own? Without Glitch power?  _

 

But she was still hesitant, remembering Neo-Devimon.  _ W _ _ ill it turn back into  _ _ a _ _ monster? _

  


The light engulfing her digimon exploded outwards, and her question was answered most magnificently.

  


The digimon flying above her was shorter and stockier than Devimon, and sported two massive black, feathery wings, like some sort of fallen angel. It was wearing a strange mask, exposing a third eye in its forehead, and a leather jacket. It held in each hand a large, intricately designed pistol.

  


With shaky hands, she held up her digivice to get a read on it.  _ Beezlemon. Level: Ultimate. Type: Virus. _

  


It spun its pistols, grinning fiercely. “Now, _this_ is more like it!”

  


It aimed carefully, and with an explosion that made Eleena's ears ring, the doll’s head exploded. Chunks of clay flew in all directions, falling to the ground around the doll's feet.

  


Its body kept stumbling forward, however, undeterred by the loss. It shot a beam of light at Beezlemon, who whirled to dodge it. A second bullet shattered the blue glass sphere on the doll’s chest that the beams came from.

  


“Enough fooling around!” Eleena yelled. “Destroy it!”

  


“I don’t want to hit Megan or Agumon!” Beezlemon yelled back at her. “It keeps jerking around, I can’t get a clear shot!”

  


Suddenly, Eleena heard footsteps behind her. She turned to see Turuiemon bound into the clearing, Andrew clinging to his shoulders. 

  


Andrew half-fell off his back, landing hard on his knees. “MEGAN!” he shouted as Cameron came running to help him to his feet. “What the hell is going on here?!”

  


“No time to explain,” Eleena called back to him. “Turuiemon, can you immobilize it’s arm? The one it’s holding Agumon and Megan in. Beezlemon needs a clear shot at it’s body.”

  


“What the hell is Beezlem-” Andrew began to ask, then froze, staring up into the sky. “Oh. Whoah.”

  


Turuiemon had much better reflexes than his partner, leaping immediately into action. It jumped high into the air and landed on the doll’s tightly-closed fist, pinning it to the ground.

  


“Beezlemon! Now!” Eleena cried.

  


Beezlemon’s twin pistols rained down fire on the struggling doll. Bits of clay and metal flew into the air as it was peppered with bullet-holes, its arms and legs spun out in different directions as they were severed from its body, and finally, a bullet embedded into its torso caused it to burst open from the inside.

  


Eleena ducked as a chunk of flaming clay soared over her head, then ran over to where Turuiemon had pinnedthe doll’s severed arm down. Despite being disconnected from its body, it was still twitching and squirming defiantly, like a lizard's discarded tail.

  


She helped Turuiemon pry open the doll’s fingers so Megan and Agumon could crawl out of its grasp. The two of them sat on the ground for a moment, leaning on each other and catching their breath.

  


“Ummm… you ok?” Eleena asked awkwardly. Now that the adrenaline was flagging from her body, she felt kind of dumb just standing there.

  


Megan’s head snapped up, and she jumped to her feet, running at Eleena and grabbing her around the waist in a choking hold. 

 

Eleena flinched hard, sure she was being attacked- until Megan started nuzzling affectionately into her stomach.

  


“ Thankyouthankyouthankyouthankyouthankyou!!!” she chanted over and over again. “Oh my god, you were  _ so cool! _ ”

  


“Um- well-” Eleena decided that the best way to describe how she was feeling right now was ‘flustered’. She didn’t like it very much. “Beezlemon did all the work.”

  


“ You were  _ super cool,  _ don’t try and get out of it,” Megan said firmly.  She was staring up at her with huge, shiny eyes, full of… awe? Gratitude? Admiration?

 

Whatever it was, it was giving Eleena the heebie-jeebies. But also… the warm,  possessive feeling from earlier hadn't quite faded, and she felt a sense of satisfaction at seeing Megan safe again. It was all that kept her from throwing the girl  immediately out of her arms.

  


Beezlemon landed near them with a thud, and immediately de-evolved. The light faded to reveal Yaamon sitting in the grass, it’s eyes half closed. “Mmm, I’m  _ tired, _ ”  i t  said, yawn ing widely.

  


Eleena pried herself out of Megan’s grip, (not an easy feat,) and walked over to pick her digimon up. “Good job,” she muttered in it’s ear. 

  


She was answered by a soft snore; it was already fast asleep.

  


“I swear to god, can’t you guys keep out of trouble for like five minutes?” Andrew complained. 

  


“It’s not our fault!” Cameron protested. “The doll started it!”

  


Lopmon, who had just de-evolved himself, wandered over into the middle of camp and flopped down with a sigh. “At least this day can’t possibly get worse,” he grumbled.

  


Just then, there was a crashing sound in the distance.

  


Andrew glared at Lopmon. “You’re not allowed to talk anymore.”

  


Lopmon shrugged. “That’s fair.”

  


It quickly became apparent what was making the noise; in the distance, Eleena could see a cloud of dust rising as an entire _horde_ of dolls advanced on them.

  


_ Shit, that first one was just stalling us out _ , she thought bitterly,  her stomach twisting with renewed anxiety . And it had worked; they had expended all their energy fighting a single soldier, leaving them vulnerable  for a second attack.

  


“What do we do?” Desoto asked. “We can’t fight, there’s too many of them!”

  


Megan was scowling out at the approaching mob. “There’s no way we can outrun them, either. All our digimon are exhausted, we won’t get far in this state.”

  


“Um, actually…” they turned to see Andrew smiling sheepishly, one hand raised like he was being called on in class. “Do you think we could run for about a quarter of a mile? Because Turuiemon and I found something that might be helpful.”

  
~

  


“A teleporter?” Megan asked.

  


It had been a relatively long hike up to the ruins, and by the time they'd arrived, Andrew could hear the dolls getting much closer than he was comfortable with. 

 

They were all clustered around the bright, mirror like structure that was still rapidly channel-surfing. Everyone was oohing and ahhing over it appeciatively.

  


Andrew shrugged. “That’s what Lopmon says.”

  


“And how do we know that it’s going to work, and isn’t horrifically dangerous?” Cameron asked skeptically. 

  


“We don’t,” Lopmon said. “But it’s this or surrender ourselves to those creepy dolls.”

  


“Point taken,” Cameron said. “But what if we end up, like, getting all our limbs mixed up or something?”

 

“Dibs on your arms,” Megan said immediately.

 

“I want his long legs,” Desoto chimed in with a grin.

 

Andrew shot Cameron a look and licked his lips. “I want your pretty blue eyes.”

 

“Why do you guys have to be so creepy?!” Cameron squealed, clutching his hands to his chest in mock terror.

 

“I don’t like this,” Eleena said quietly.

  


“I’m not partial to it myself, but Lopmon is right,” said Megan. “What other choice do we have?”

  


There was a rumble outside, and the floor began to shake. They all turned nervously to the blown-out windows; they could see the horde of dolls coming up the hill towards them.

  


“Well, whatever we decide, we don’t have all day to stand around debating it,” Andrew said, trying to keep his voice steady even as his heart was jumping all over the place.. “I’m going to risk it. Are you coming with me?”

  


“Of course we are,” Megan and Agumon said at the same time.

  


Eleena huffed and looked down at the sleeping digimon in her arms. “...Fine,” she grumbled, refusing to make eye-contact with him.

  


“It doesn’t look like we have a choice,” Desoto said quietly. “Are you ok with it, Patamon?”

 

“Yep,” Patamon said, their cute little face scrunched up in determination.

  


“Well, what are we waiting for?” Cameron stepped forward to stand next to Andrew, Gabumon following him closely. “It’s not like this is the first phenomenally risky and stupid thing we’ve done since we got here.”

  


That coaxed a small laugh from Andrew. “Here; we should all hold onto each other, so we don’t get separated.” The images on the teleporter were switching so rapidly that he was worried they might end up in different places if they went in one by one.

  


Cameron nodded thoughtfully. “Sounds reasonable.” And without hesitation, he reached out and grabbed Andrew's hand.

  


Andrew twitched in surprise, and tried not to look like he was being affected by Cameron’s warm, rough hand gripping his own.  _ He’s like, fourteen, where does he get off having callouses like that?!  _ he wondered hysterically.

  


“Why is your face turning red?” Lopmon asked, peering up at him suspiciously.

  


“ _Because it’s hot in here!”_ Andrew growled. “Just hold my freaking hand and shut up.”

  


He could hear Megan snickering behind him. He resolved to punch her on the nose later.

  


They all lined up, holding hands like they were about to play some bizarre version of crack the whip. The ground shook under their feet as the dolls got closer and closer.

  


“I’ll go in first since I'm on the end,” Lopmon said.

  


“ Be careful, alright?” Andrew said. “If anything feels…  _ wrong _ , back out.”

  


“Hurry up!” Eleena hissed. 

  


Andrew saw Lopmon take a deep breath. Then he cautiously stretched out a paw towards the glasslike surface of the teleporter.

  


As soon as his claw touched it, it was like they'd been tied to the back of a rocketship as it left the atmosphere. Andrew didn’t even have time to scream as he was dragged into a cold, dark space where he lost all sense of equilibrium.

  


~

  


Cameron had closed his eyes instinctively as they were sucked into the teleporter. His hands were clenched around Andrew's and Gabumon's in a white-knuckle grip.

 

Now that the initial rush was over with, and his heart-rate was beginning to slow, he felt… weightless. It was like floating through cold, still water, except that he could breathe. 

 

He opened his eyes.

  


All around him was a swirling kaleidoscope of colors and shapes, spinning by so fast he couldn’t make sense of them. His friends were floating along, strung out on either side of him, various looks of awe and fear on their faces.

  


Cameron forgot his fear in favor of excitement. Wherever they were, it was incredibly beautiful; it was almost like they were in space, weightless and exposed to the beauty of the infinite cosmos. 

 

Or some junk like that. 

  


He turned his head to the left to see Andrew staring up, his eyes wide and starry. His curly hair was being tossed this way and that as they moved through the void. There was an almost _rapturous_ look on his face, like he was seeing something holy.

  


Cameron blinked.  _ I never noticed before, but.. he’s kind of beautiful, isn’t he? _

  


He had no time to ruminate on that thought, as just at that moment, Andrew’s sweaty fingers began to slip out of his grip.

  


His heart stopped. “No- nonono, Andrew, hold on-!” 

  


Andrew made a little sound of fear as their grip broke, and he and Lopmon drifted away.

  


“NO!” Cameron shouted, flailing his arm out and trying to catch ahold of them- but they tumbled deeper into the void, swept out of sight.

  


“ANDREW!” Megan shrieked.

  


Suddenly, the entire line of children and digimon started spinning, and the force of motion began to pull them apart. Cameron gritted his teeth and held onto Gabumon’s scaly hand as hard as he could.

  


There was a high-pitched scream, and he saw Megan and Desoto break off and swirl away. Cameron reached out desperately, like he could grab them if he just tried hard enough, but in another second they were gone too.

  


It no longer felt like he was floating- he was plummeting, falling fast towards an unknown destination. All he could do was yell as he was pulled inexorably down, and everything went dark.

  


~

  


When he woke up, he had a raging headache and a mouthful of sand. 

  


With a groan, he levered himself up. A lot of sand fell out of his shirt, and shook out of his hair into his eyes. He spat and sputtered, blinking rapidly and looking around to try and figure out where in hell he was.

  


Apparently, he was in the middle of a desert. 

 

All around him, pale red sand dunes stretched as far as the eye could see. The sky above him was an endless, slate-blue expanse that stretched over the land, the sun shining down unimpeded by even a hint of clouds.

  


A couple feet away, he could see Eleena, Gabumon and Yaamon lying on the ground, still; he assumed they were still unconscious. 

  


He ran over to them, his feet slipping on the loose sand. “Gabumon! Gabumon, are you ok?”

  


Gabumon stirred at the sound of his voice, groaning. “Uhhn… I think something _stepped_ on me.”

  


Cameron helped him to his feet. “Where even _are_ we?”

  


“Um… I think we’re in a desert.” Gabumon grinned sheepishly when he caught sight of Cameron’s glare. “Sorry, couldn't resist. I have no clue where we are.”

  


Cameron sighed. “God, where did the others end up?” He was so worried he thought he might puke; he couldn’t forgot the look of terror Andrew had worn as he slipped away from him, or the terrible sound of Megan and Desoto screaming as they were pulled into the void.

  


“I don’t know,” Gabumon answered sadly. “We'll hope it was someplace better than this.”

  


Next to them, Eleena began to stir. He shot a scowl her way; out of the whole group, of course _she_ was the one he’d end up stuck in a desert with.

  


She sat up slowly, and almost immediately she was on the alert. She scrambled to her feet, pausing on the way to grab Yaamon. She dusted him off and held him out at arms length. “Are you alright?!”

  


“Mnfg, lemme sleep,” Yaamon muttered, yawning and then settling back down in her hands.

  


She snorted, then, looking up, glared at Cameron. “Oh great, _you’re_ here.”

  


“I’m not any happier about it than you are!” he crossed his arms. 

  


She sighed roughly, running a hand through her hair and sending a cascade of sand down her back. “So, let me get this straight. We’re stuck here in the middle of a desert, and there isn’t any trace of the others?”

  


“Looks like it,” Cameron grunted. He didn't want to have to talk to her any more than was necessary.

  


“I should have run when I had the chance,” she muttered, holding Yaamon to her chest.

  


He sneered at her. “I wish you  _ had _ .”

  


“Guys, please stop fighting!” Gabumon got in between them. “The situation is bad enough. We have to stay calm and work together.”

  


Cameron hated to admit it, but his digimon was right. If they kept bickering, they’d use up the energy they should be saving for survival. “Ok, fine. What do we do now?”

  


“ Only one thing we  _ can  _ do, jackass,” Eleena said, shaking sand out of her jeans. “We start walking.”


	15. Episode 15- Stormfront

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- children facing harsh survival situations.

The first thing Megan became aware of was that she was desperately, achingly cold.

 

She opened her eyes and jerked upright, her heart pounding and her hands sinking into the thick layer of snow she was submerged in. She looked around in bewilderment, shivering violently; where was she?

 

All around her was a dense evergreen forest, tall pines capped with snow encircling her. The sky was obscured by a thick, featureless mass of clouds, and snow was falling so heavy and fast that she was being gently blanketed just sitting there.

 

Agumon was laying by her side, and some feet away, she could see Desoto and Patamon half-buried in the snow. 

 

_ Ohh, this is bad, _ she thought, wrapping her arms around herself. She  _hated_ snow; of all the places that damned teleporter had to spit them out...

 

Her heart plummeted as the memories came back to her; entering the teleporter, floating weightless through a colorful void, being pulled away from her friends-

 

Andrew! Oh god, she'd been separated from Andrew!

 

She was paralyzed with fear. This was bad, this was SO bad; she hadn't been away from her brother for more than a few minutes at a time since they arrived in the Digital World (except for the time Vega made them split up, which she was STILL pissy about,) and now they could be on the other side of the world as far as she knew.

 

_ I can't do this, _ she thought, starting to panic.  _I can't do this without him! Oh god, what if he's hurt? What if he's dead? I'll never forgive myself if something happens to him!_

 

She was ready to go into a full-blown panic attack, when Desoto and the digimon began to stir.

 

She forced herself to breathe.  _You can't afford to go into hysterics_ , she told herself sternly.  _Get a hold of yourself. Andrew is fine- he HAS to be fine- and you need to take care of De._

 

By the time they started to sit up and look around blearily, she had neatly compartmentalized her thoughts and shut away her worries about her brother. 

 

She went over to her own digimon first, helping him up out of the snow. “Come on, buddy, up and at-em!” she said, forcing her voice to sound cheerful.

 

“Ooogg...” Agumon groaned, rubbing his head. “Let's not do that again any time soon.”

 

Desoto staggered to his feet, holding a limp, shivering Patamon in his arms. “Where… are we?” he asked, squinting around at the snow and the thick, tall pine trees that surrounded them.

 

“No clue,” Megan said, putting her hands on her hips. “It looks like we got separated from the others when we went through that portal.”

 

She had to fight down another spike of panic at the thought. _Focus, focus. You can do this_. 

 

Desoto's face fell. “Oh no… I hope they're alright,” he muttered, shaking snow out of his hair.

 

“I wish we'd thought to bring jackets with us,” Megan sighed. This was not ideal; it looked like a blizzard was brewing around them, and they were out in their shirt-sleeves. She was wearing _shorts_. Her legs were already starting to go numb.

 

“Well… I suppose we need to go find shelter,” Desoto said.

 

“I can start a fire, and we can camp out here for the night,” Agumon offered.

 

“No, we need to start moving,” Megan said. “This storm is only going to get worse as the night goes on. We wouldn't be able to keep a fire going in this kind of weather.”

 

“I don't think we could even start one,” Desoto said. “All the wood around here is probably wet.”

 

“Maybe there's a town nearby,” Patamon interjected hopefully even as they shivered.

 

Megan patted Agumon on the head, then reached way up to ruffle Desoto's hair. “We're gonna be ok, guys, don't worry. I know a thing or two about wilderness survival; I played minecraft every day for two years straight.”

 

That got a laugh out of De and a couple of confused looks from their digimon. The tense knot in Megan's chest began to relax; as long as she had a goal, and someone to look after, she would be fine.

 

“Here, let's hold hands,” Desoto said. “I don't want either of us getting lost out here.”

 

Megan shuddered. “Good idea.”

 

The three of them trudged their way forward through the thick, powdery snow, Patamon fluttering along beside them. As they began their journey, Megan closed her eyes and allowed herself one last, brief moment of vulnerability.

 

_God, Goddess, anyone out there who's listening,_ she prayed,  Desoto's warm hand leading her forward .  _Please… keep my brother safe. Wherever he is._

 

~

 

 

_The sun was on his face. The flowers smelled beautiful._

 

“ _Lopmon, don't shut me out. I care about you.”_

 

_He felt a hand on his arm, and turned to see-_

 

Lopmon shuddered awake. He struggled to sit up, his fur all staticky and ruffled. His whole body felt charged and strange, his heart beating too fast, his pulse hammering in his veins.

 

For a few moments, he was disoriented, because the landscape around him was exactly the same as it had been in his dream. A vast field of flowers bobbing gently in the wind, tall, rolling hills and, out in the distance, the sea.

 

But no, he wasn't dreaming now- he pinched his ear to make sure. And instead of a stranger who he could _almost_ remember sitting beside him, Andrew was there; lying on his back and crushing all the pretty flowers with his big, unwieldy human body.

 

 _Ugh, typical._ Lopmon grunted, and gave him a hard shove. “Andrew, get up!”

 

Andrew didn't move. Getting frustrated, Lopmon tipped his head down and headbutted him sharply in the ribs.

 

“GAH!” Andrew scrambled into a sitting position, clutching at his chest. He looked up, panting, and glared at Lopmon. “What was that for?!”

 

“To wake you up,” Lopmon said, scowling.

 

He couldn't quite explain why he was acting so cross, but he was really pissed off for some reason. This place… it was _so_ familiar, and he could _almost_ remember why it felt so important to him… but not quite.

 

It was driving him to distraction. He huffed out a breath and smoothed his fur down, trying to gather his patience.

 

“Where are the others?” Andrews voice had turned fearful. “Lopmon, where ARE we?”

 

Lopmon sighed, tugging at his ears in agitation. “I guess… we must have gotten separated when we went through the portal.”

 

Andrew made a weird, strangled sound. Lopmon turned to see him clutching at his face, his eyes wide with terror, his body rocking back and forth slightly.

 

“No, no, no,” he muttered, his voice getting louder and more frantic as he spoke. “No, we can't- Megan- oh god, what if they- no, I can't, I CAN'T-”

 

Lopmon blinked, shocked to see his usually subdued human partner freaking out like this. “Whoa, hey!” He walked over to his side, forgetting his own discomfort and anger. “It's ok, shhh, don't- don't worry, ok?”

 

Andrew whimpered, tears welling up in his eyes.

 

Lopmon grimaced; he was really bad at this. Gently, carefully, he placed his hands on Andrew's knee. “Look, it's ok. I promise. We'll find the others, you don't have to be scared.”

 

Andrew continued to rock and whimper for a few more moments, trembling under Lopmons hands. But soon enough, he gulped in a few deep, shuddering breaths. “Y-you're right,” he said, his voice catching but not quite breaking into a sob. “I'm ok. I'm just- I'm scared. About Megan, and- and the others.”

 

“I'm sure they're fine,” Lopmon said, trying to sound soothing. “They can take care of themselves. Especially Megan, she's tough as nails.”

 

Andrew made a watery gulping noise, somewhere between a laugh and a sob. “Y-you're right.”

 

“C'mon,” Lopmon urged him. “Get up. Let's start walking, and… and I'm sure we'll find a town, or some kind of landmark or something.”

 

Andrew nodded, and after another deep breath, levered himself up. Lopmon watched as he stood up, staggering slightly, and started walking down the hill. Flowers and tall grass were crushed under his clumsy feet as he wandered vaguely forward.

 

Lopmon felt a little shaken. He knew Andrew was a sensitive kid, but seeing him break down like that… it was almost disturbing, somehow.

 

It made sense, though. He was so close to his sister- Lopmon figured that being separated from her must be traumatic.

 

Acting on impulse, he ran forward and took Andrew's hand.

 

The human looked down at him, shocked- but then squeezed his paw gently and actually gave him a weak, watery smile.

 

They kept going forwards, Lopmon trying to ignore the nagging memories that bobbed just below the surface of his subconscious, and Andrew trying to keep a brave face despite his fear.

 

~

 

Desoto figured they'd been walking for about an hour and a half.

 

He was astonished that in such a short amount of time, things had gotten _so_ much worse.

 

Megan had been right about the storm; it had blown in quickly, and it  really meant business . The wind whipped across his face and bare arms,  stinging at first and then slowly numbing him down as time passed . A ll around them, t he snow was coming down so thick he could hardly see  his own hand in front of his face.

 

Patamon had flown alongside him for a while until the wind got bad. Then they'd crouched on his shoulder, but they'd been shivering so violently that he finally just tucked his shirt into his jeans and stuffed them down against his belly to keep them both warm.

 

They were still shivering helplessly, and he was terrified they were going to freeze and die before they could find shelter. They were just so little and fragile; he could feel their heartbeat thrumming against his bare skin, like a scared cat.

 

Megan and his hands were clasped so tightly it felt like they were welded together. They trudged along behind Agumon, who was clearing the path for them by sweeping his tail back and forth. He'd been melting the snow with his pepper breath, but then the wind got so bad the fireballs started getting blown back in their faces, and he'd had to stop before someone's hair caught fire.

 

Desoto's legs were stiff and sore, his hands and nose were numb from cold, and he could hardly even feel his face. He felt like he was moments away from giving up, collapsing to his knees and letting the storm take him.

 

Were they ever going to find shelter? No matter how far they walked, the forest just kept going, and the longer they walked, the more energy and warmth they lost.

 

They couldn't keep hoping to find reliable shelter; they'd have to make one themselves.

 

He tugged gently on Megan's hand. “Hey, guys,” he called, loud enough that Agumon would hear. “Let's stop.”

 

“Dude, I know you're tired, but we can't stop now.” Megan's voice was exhausted, her cheeryness worn ragged at the edges.

 

“We can't just keep walking either,” Desoto said. “Face it, no one would live out here in this frozen heckscape.”

 

“A, heckscape isn't a word, B, people live at the frigging _poles_ , De,” Megan said, crossing her arms. Her braid was flapping freely in the breeze like a flag. “And digimon can have fur. I'm sure if we just keep going, we'll find-”

 

He was starting to lose his patience. “Megan, if we keep going, we're going to freeze to death,” he said. “If we dig a hole in the snow, we can line it with branches from the pine trees. Agumon can start a fire, and then we'll be-”

 

“NO!”

 

Desoto took a step back, shocked. He'd seen Megan get pissy before. He'd seen her get really angry once or twice, most notably when Eleena had threatened _him_.

 

He'd never seen her like this before. Her eyes were blown wide and she was trembling- although that would be the cold. Her hands were clenched into fists, and she had this… almost _feral_ look on her face.

 

“I'm- I'm not- I'm not gonna stay out here!” She took in a deep, shuddery breath, clutching at her own arms. “I'm not going to stay out one second longer than I have to. We're going to keep walking, we're going to find someone to help us, and we're gonna be _fine_.”

 

“Megan, that's not gonna happen!” Desoto walked forward, and grabbed her by the shoulders. A small part of his brain was yelling at him that this was a bad idea, but he ignored it. “We _need_ to make a shelter and try to survive the night.”

 

“De, I-” she looked up at him, and suddenly he realized she wasn't _mad_ ; she was _scared_. Her eyes were filling with tears, and her fingers were digging hard into her own arms. “I _can't_. I can't do this anymore, I can't- I can't take it.”

 

He let out a little huff. “Jesus. Megan, I- I get it,” he said. It was profoundly disturbing to see her like this; he'd gotten so used to relying on her, he'd kinda forgotten that she was a kid just like him. “But if we don't take it, we'll _die._ Are you seriously ok with that?”

 

“Hey, guys?” Agumon interrupted before she could answer.

 

“What?” Megan pulled herself out of Desoto's grasp, hurriedly wiping her eyes.

 

“I think I smell smoke,” Agumon said. “Woodsmoke, and cooking food. There must be people nearby!”

 

Desoto and Megan looked at each other, and he saw relief wash across her face.

 

He grabbed her hand again. “Come on. We can do this; just follow me.”

 

“Ok,” she said, in a very small voice.

 

The last stretch of their journey was the hardest; as they trudged through the growing storm, all of Desoto's muscles were screaming at him in pain. They followed Agumon, hoping desperately that his nose was reliable.

 

When they finally reached the edge of the forest and he could see lights shining out of the dark, Desoto almost started sobbing from sheer relief. _We made it. Oh my god, we actually made it. We're going to be ok_.

 

They fought the wind and the snow until finally, they came into eyeshot of several low-slung, grey wooden houses. They staggered up to a door, and Megan knocked frantically at it with trembling hands. “HEY! Please open up, we're freezing out here!”

 

“Don't be rude,” Agumon scolded her.

 

“Better rude than frozen,” Desoto mumbled, putting a hand on the lump of Patamon's body against his stomach. To his relief, they were still warm, still breathing.

 

After a moment that seemed to last a cold eternity, the door swung open. Desoto couldn't see who opened it, but a high-pitched, squeaky voice said, “Oh my, you poor things! Come inside and get warm.”

 

They piled in without asking questions. Desoto had to duck to make it through the low doorway, and the ceilings were no higher inside, but the warmth that enveloped his body as the door shut behind them was worth any amount of discomfort.

 

It took him a minute to stop basking in the warm glow and really register his surroundings, but when he finally started looking around, he saw that he was inside a small, rustic cabin, with lots of wicker furniture and woven blankets (all much to small for humans to use) placed around. It was a pretty cosy house… if you were about the size of a gerbil.

 

He looked down, and finally realized who had opened the door; a tiny, pink, round digimon was standing by his foot. It had big green eyes and blue leaflike fronds growing from it's head in place of hair. “Come, come, make yourselves at home! Go sit by the fire, warm up.”

 

He and Megan eagerly took its kind offer, huddling together by the small but warm fire crackling in stone hearth. Desoto realized that there were other small digimon clustered around the edges of the room, whispering to each other and watching them with wide, curious eyes.

 

Patamon started to squirm, and Desoto let them out of his shirt so they could feel the fire's heat. They curled up on his lap and blinked at him sweetly. “Thanks for letting me stay in there, De,” they said. “I was sure my wings were going to freeze and fall off.”

 

“No problem, buddy,” he murmured, stretching his stiff fingers out towards the fire.

 

“Thanks for letting us stay here,” Megan told the little pink digimon. “Who are you?”

 

“I'm Yokomon,” the little creature replied. “I'm the mayor of NorthWind town. Welcome, travelers!”

 

“A digimon village, huh?” Megan said. “It's nice to meet you. I'm Megan, and this is Agumon.” She pointed to her digimon, who had already fallen fast asleep at her feet.

 

“I'm Desoto,” he said.

 

“And I'm Patamon,” chimed in his digimon. “Thank you for letting us stay here.”

 

“Stay as long as you like,” Yokomon said. “We had a great harvest this year, so there's plenty of food to go around! I'll get you something to eat,” and it wandered off to talk to some of the other little digimon.

 

Desoto sighed happily. A warm fire, and the promise of dinner; this night was turning out much better than he'd expected.

 

“Hey, De?”

 

He looked up to see Megan watching him. She looked… almost guilty. “What's up?”

 

“I'm sorry,” she said quietly. “About… well, I could have gotten us killed. I was being stupid. Thank you, for trying to talk sense into me.”

 

He looked at her for a long moment. Then he reached out and patted her shoulder, smiling. “Honestly, my idea could have gotten us killed to. I have no idea how to survive in the middle of a blizzard.”

 

“Tweenagers probably shouldn't be allowed to camp alone in the woods in the dead of winter,” she said.

 

They had a laugh over that, but Desoto was still a little worried about her. He'd never seen her break down like that before. “Are… are you ok now?” he asked.

 

She shot him a smile. “I'm fine, don't worry about it.”

 

He didn't know if he really believed her. But there wasn't a lot he could do about it right now.

 

Yokomon brought them food, and began to chat with Megan. Desoto tried to keep up with the conversation, but as soon as he finished his meal, he found himself drifting off as he sat there.

 

The next thing he knew, someone had put a blanket over him and slipped a pillow under his head. Patamon snuggled up under his chin, and he gave them a gentle kiss before finally drifting off to sleep, safe and happy.

 

~

 

Of all the places to be stranded, Andrew supposed this wasn't the worst.

 

At least there was some pretty scenery. This place was straight of a Ghibli movie, complete with huge, fluffy, low-flying clouds and a distant sea that glittered like it was made of sapphires.

 

That didn't make up for the fact that he was lost and alone, separated from his sister and all his human friends, with only Lopmon for company.

 

Anxiety gnawed at his stomach, making him so sick and scared that it was a constant struggle not to just curl up on the ground and weep for a while.

 

But one thing helped, and surprisingly it was Lopmon. He was being unusually kind and caring; he'd actually held Andrew's hand for a while there, and kept trying to make conversation to cheer his partner up.

 

No matter how hard he tried, however, he couldn't hide his own anxiety and discomfort. Andrew noticed the way his nose wrinkled up and how his paws fidgeted, twisting and pulling at his ears. Something about this place was bothering him, it was plain to see.

 

After Lopmon had been so nice to him all day, Andrew finally decided it was only fair that he try and return the favor. He took a deep breath, and asked, “Have you… ever been here before?”

 

Lopmon didn't answer him right away. He tugged at his ears for a moment, frowning. “I… I think I might have? I don't know. It feels familiar, but I don't have any specific memories of coming here.”

 

Andrew didn't want to push him, so he stayed quiet, waiting for Lopmon to continue. Maybe he couldn't fix whatever was going on, but he could at least try his hand at being a good listener.

 

Eventually, Lopmon started to speak again. “I… I've been having dreams, actually,” he said, slowly, and stopped walking. “Dreams where I'm sitting up here on these hills, and… and I'm talking to someone, but I can't see their face. I can't- I can't remember who they are.”

 

Andrew blinked in shock. “Lopmon, why didn't you tell me about this?”

 

Lopmon shrugged, looking away. “I didn't want to worry you. It's just some stupid dreams, they don't mean anything...”

 

Andrew frowned at him in concern. He stopped and crouched down, rocking back a little on his heels. “Lopmon,” he said seriously. “If there's one thing this messed up, awful world has taught me, it's not to ignore subtle signs and nagging doubts. If you're having recurring dreams, it means something's happening- even if it just means that you're having anxiety, which I want to _help_ you with.”

 

Lopmon hunched his shoulders. “Even if I told you, you wouldn't understand.”

 

Andrew bit his lip, trying not to get frustrated. He had to be patient, patient and understanding. “I'm your partner, Lopmon. Don't shut me out.”

 

Lopmon's eyes widened, and his head snapped up. “What did you just-” he began, but their heartfelt conversation was interrupted by a sudden, strange tremor that ran through the air.

 

At first Andrew thought it was the first sign of an earthquake. He jumped to his feet, staring around wildly. His stomach rolled, and the earth seemed to shift underneath him.

 

But then it happened again, and this time he saw it clearly; a weird shiver, like a heatwave, that traveled through the grass and flowers, distorting them as it passed. It set him off balance, but it didn't actually make anything _move_. It wasn't a physical force at all.

 

Andrew shuddered as it went through him, all the hairs on his body standing up. “What is _that_?”

 

“I don't know, but it's not good news,” Lopmon said. “Here, help me evolve.”

 

But before they could act, there was a great dull ringing noise, like a giant bell muffled with cotton, and something began to emerge from beyond the hill.

 

A towering, malformed shape rose up into view, a shifting mass of color and light. Staticky and buzzing, less like something from a nightmare and more like something from a surreal art film, it looked like a stormcloud that was trying to come alive, bulging and shifting and swarming.

 

Whatever it was, it was BIG. As it crested the hill, Andrew craned his neck back and still couldn't see how high it went- it spiraled up into the sky with no end it sight.

 

It emanated a buzz that slowly grew in pitch until they had to clap their hands over their ears. The sound warped slowly into a shrilling scream of agony, then wavered and split, a thousand screams rending the air.

 

Then the noise broke off into a crackle of static. Another pulse of distortion spread out from the thing, almost knocking the Andrew off his feet.

 

Lopmon grabbed onto his sleeve. “Andrew, I think that's the Glitch!” he yelled into his ear.

 

“No shit!” Andrew yelled back.

 

Almost as if their shouting had attracted it's attention, the massive, spiraling shape paused for a moment. Then, with a roar like the grinding of a thousand gears, it turned and started heading straight towards them.

 

Lopmon tugged at him, trying to get his attention, but all Andrew could do was sit and stare, petrified as the most powerful being in the entire digital world bore down on them.


	16. Episode 16- An Unknown Legacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- More intense survival situations.

Cameron had never been so thirsty in his entire life.

 

For hours, he, Eleena and Gabumon had walked under the baking desert sun. No matter how long they walked, it never felt like they were going anywhere; the horizon stayed a stubborn, bleak portrait of sand and heat mirages. He and Eleena didn't even had the energy to snipe at each other as they trudged along.

 

Cameron had eventually taken his shirt off and tied it over his head as a makeshift sunhat. When he suggested that Eleena do the same, she had given him such a vicious look he'd immediately shut his mouth.

 

Gabumon had even taken his fur off- and oh my god it was _so weird_ that he could to that- and was dragging it along behind him like a trophy pelt. Cameron tried not to stare at his weird, naked lizard body as they walked.

 

Despite their best efforts to keep cool, Cameron was pretty sure they were doomed. Even after the sun went down and night saved them from the unbearable heat, they didn't have any water, and that was a death sentence.

 

He wondered how long it would take for their bones to bleach out in the sun. He wondered if there were the digimon equivalent of vultures and jackals out here to feast on their sun-cooked carcasses after they inevitably expired.

 

“Stop that,” Gabumon panted.

 

“Stop what?” Cameron asked. “I wasn't doing anything.”

 

“You're being morbid, I can smell it.”

 

“That's just the sweat,” Cameron joked weakly.

 

He hadn't spoken to, or even looked at, Eleena for hours, so it took him a moment to realize she wasn't walking beside him anymore. He turned to see her standing several feet behind him, shading her eyes and peering off into the distance.

 

He clicked his tongue impatiently. “Oh come on, what is it?”

 

“I see something. In the distance,” she said, shifting her grip on the sleeping digimon in her arms.

 

“It's called a mirage,” Cameron said testily.

 

“I've been seeing those for the part three hours,” she said, narrowing her eyes at him imperiously.“This looks different.”

 

Cameron put both his hands up over his face and squinted, trying to see what she did. After a few seconds, he could make something out- a low, greenish blob that did indeed look just a bit more solid than the heat illusions he'd been seeing all afternoon. “OK, yeah, I see it too. But what _is_ it? It could be dangerous.”

 

“Does it matter? We're dying out here anyway.” Eleena said, and started walking again. “If it's dangerous, maybe it will kill us with a little more mercy.”

 

Cameron hated to admit it, but she was right. “Well, I guess it's not like we have anything better to do.”

 

So they kept walking. The sun had reached that point on the horizon where it burned directly into their eyes, Cameron was pretty sure his shoes were more full of sand than feet at this point, and he honestly felt like he was on the verge of collapse.

 

He was just about to suggest sitting down and taking a five-minute breather, when Gabumon suddenly grabbed his hand. “Cammie, look! It's an oasis!”

 

His head snapped up. There, not 100 yards away, he could see a smear of color Trees, standing still with no breeze to stir their lush leaves, and a wide lake sparkling red in the sunset.

 

He was running before he even thought about it. His aching body protested under the sudden treatment, but he just had to reach that place as quickly as possible. Eleena took off beside him, and it almost turned into a race, the two of them silently competing even though there was no reason to.

 

After what felt like an eternity of slipping on the loose sand, they finally reached the oasis. The first cool touch of shade on his burnt skin felt like absolute heaven, and he wanted to cry with happiness at finally stepping onto solid ground.

 

As soon as he reached the edge of the lake, he kicked off his shoes, threw his shirt down, and fell in with a tremendous splash. He paddled forward, gasping and laughing.

 

Eleena had beat him to it and was already floating in the middle of the lake, her hair spreading out around her like a shroud, Yaamon still clutched tight to her chest.

 

The round little digimon stirred and blinked. It looked around, then jumped and hissed, all it's fur standing up. “What the hell?! Are you trying to drown me, human?!”

 

“Hush,” Eleena said firmly, her eyes closed, looking more relaxed than Cameron had ever seen before.

 

Gabumon cannonballed in after him, leaving his fur on the shore next to Cameron's shirt. “Gyaaaah! This is amazing!” he yelled, paddling around like a dog.

 

Cameron shoved his face underwater and drank deeply, not caring if  it  was  safe or  not.  At the moment he felt perfectly happy to die from poisoned water.

 

He finished his drink and threw his head back, gasping, staring up at the sunlight filtering through the leaves above them.

 

He didn't think he'd ever felt so happy to be alive.

 

~

 

The sun had set by the time they finally left the water, and it was actually starting to get cold. The moon was high and full above them, reflecting light off their soaked bodies.

 

Eleena wrung her hair out, and Impmon (who had evolved when the water revitalized it) crawled out of the pond after her, grumbling under its breath. “I didn't _need_ a friggin' bath,” it growled, kicking up clumps of grass.

 

“Well, that was fun,” she said, grimacing at how her wet clothes stuck to her skin. “But this still doesn't solve the fact that we're lost in the middle of the desert.”

 

“At least we're lost with water now,” Cameron said, pulling his shirt on. Behind him, Gabumon was struggling to fix its fur back in place.

 

She rolled her eyes. “So what, do we intend to stay here forever?”

 

“Oh my god, can't you just be happy for like, two seconds?!” Cameron threw up his arms in frustration. “We almost died in the sand! Aren't you even slightly relieved that we didn't?”

 

“Well excuse me for not being as short-sighted as you!” she snapped.

 

“At least _I'm_ not an absolute jerk to people for no reason!” Cameron shouted. He crossed his arms and glared at her. “Why do you hate me so much? I've never _done_ anything to you!”

 

“It's just a matter of time,” she muttered. “I know what kind of person you are.”

 

Boys like Cameron were always the ones who bullied her at school. Andrew and Desoto were too soft, too _different_ \- they would have been freaks just like her.

 

But this one, she knew his type; t-shirt and jeans, hair just shaggy enough to be cool, not long enough to be girly. Those confident eyes, that smile, that build- not big, but solid, probably on some sports team. Definitely popular.

 

Teachers liked them, principles believed them, adults always managed to look the other way when they tormented their classmates. They hung around in packs, like wolves, joking with each other, picking out their next target.

 

She was sick of being a target.

 

He took a step towards her, and the hairs stood up on the back of her neck. “You don't know anything about me,” he spat.

 

Suddenly, she was sure that had been the last straw- he was going to attack now. She clenched her fists, getting ready to dodge and strike back.

 

He may be bigger than her, but she was nastier. She wouldn't lose against him.

 

But before one of them could break the tension, Gabumon interrupted them. “Hey, I think there's a village over there,” it said, pointing off into the trees.

 

She turned her head, and it was right- there was a cluster of round clay houses just beyond the oasis. Their ruddy-brown color almost blended into the sand; she wasn't surprised they hadn't noticed them earlier.

 

“Hey, cool,” Cameron said, and all at once the anger drained out of him. “Let's go see if they have any food, I'm starving!”

 

He and Gabumon wandered off. Eleena stood there, staring after them, bewildered. Her hands were still in fists and adrenaline was still coursing through her.

 

She turned towards Impmon.“What was that?” she hissed. “He wanted to fight me, didn't he? What happened?”

 

“No one wants to fight you Eleena,” Impmon said. “Do you have any idea how scary you look when you're mad?”

 

She blinked down at it in surprise. It fidgeted. “I mean, not that _I'm_ scared of you. I'm not scared of anything!” it said, putting it's hands on it's hips.

 

She looked up at Cameron's retreating back, and bit her lip. If she was so scary, why had people always hurt her? Had her stepdad thought she was scary? Had the boys who tormented her at school thought so?

 

“I get scared too, you know,” she muttered, so low she didn't know if Impmon heard her or not. She shoved her hands into her pockets with a squelch, and started walking.

 

~

 

Megan woke up slowly. She was very cozy, all curled up in a nest of quilts, Agumon's head resting on her stomach. She stroked his head lazily, blinking in and out of sleep by degrees.

 

Eventually, she became aware of voices around her. Desoto's voice, she realized, and Patamon's occasionally- and the digimon that had let them into the house last night. She couldn't quite get herself to pay attention to what they were saying, and their conversation became a sort of white-noise backdrop.

 

The thing that finally pulled her back into consciousness was the smell of food. Her stomach growled, and her eyes fluttered open; if there was breakfast to be had, then maybe getting up was worth the trouble.

 

She sat up, gently nudging Agumon until he squirmed off her, stretching and yawning. She looked around to see Desoto cross-legged on the floor and talking animatedly with Yokomon.

 

He smiled when he noticed her. “Good morning! We saved you some food.” He handed her and Agumon bowls full of something that smelled a little like fried potatoes.

 

“Thanks,” she said, accepting the food and beginning to wolf it down without hesitation. It felt like she hadn't eaten in _days_.

 

“It's good to see you have an appetite,” Yokomon said happily. “How do you feel?”

 

“Much better,” Agumon said, before devouring his own bowl in three huge bites. “Mmh! 'tsh sho good!”

 

“Thanks for the hospitality,” Megan replied in between bites. “You literally saved our lives last night.”

 

“Well, we could hardly turn away the Chosen Children,” Yokomon said.

 

Megan looked up, surprised. “You know about us?”

 

“Oh man, get this,” Desoto turned to her excitedly. “She was just telling me how there used to be a whole other group of Chosen Children before us!”

 

Megan raised her eyebrows. “Seriously?”

 

“Indeed there were,” Yokomon said. “And they saved the Digital World from many great perils.”

 

“Wow.” Megan sat back, setting her near-empty bowl in her lap. “Wait- are they still around?”

 

“Unfortunately, no,” Yokomon said, looking down sadly. “They disappeared around the same time that the Glitch manifested in our world. No one knows exactly what happened, but… it is generally believed that the Glitch killed them.”

 

Megan and Desoto exchanged a tense look. _Well, that's not encouraging_ , Megan thought grimly. _Are we going to end up like them?_

 

“Did you ever meet them in person?” Patamon asked.

 

“Once,” Yokomon said.” In fact, one of the young digimon I helped raise was partnered to one of them. It was a proud day for all of us when he left to join them.”

 

_And a sad day when that digimon never came home_ , Megan thought. 

 

Was that would happen is they couldn't defeat the Glitch? Would they become just another sad story for these digimon to tell to the next batch of suckers that came through?

 

Megan was determined it wouldn't come to that. And that meant that they had to find some way to get more firepower into their arsenal. 

 

She turned to Yokomon, and asked a question that had been bubbling in the back of her mind ever since their fight with the doll in the woods, when she saw Devimon evolve into Beezlemon. “ The other Chosen Children- they were powerful, right? Could any of their digimon evolved beyond Champion level?”

 

“From what I heard tell, they all could,” she said. “Some of them may have even achieved Mega level eventually.”

 

Megan nodded, biting her lip thoughtfully. “How does that work? Like, how does a digimon _get_ that strong?”

 

“Evolution requires a tremendous amount of energy,” Yokomon said. “For most digimon, it takes years and years of intense physical and mental training to evolve beyond the Rookie stage. Andthere can be other factors; for example, up here it's so cold that we can rarely even evolve beyond in-training level.”

 

“But for those that partner up with humans- from what I understand, anyway- they can bypass years of training on the strength of your feelings alone,” She said. “The bond of trust and friendship between a digimon and its partner generates enough energy that they can evolve and fight easily and often.

 

“Well, we've gotten a good start on that,” Megan said, looking down at Agumon. “I mean, I love you to bits and pieces, buddy, and I literally trust you with my life.”

 

He beamed up at her. “Me too!”

 

“But that's not enough,” Yokomon said sternly. “To evolve further than champion, your bond must deepen. You must reach a fundamental understanding of your greatest strengths and weaknesses, so that you can tap into the full potential of your minds, hearts and souls.

 

“And… how can you tell when that happens?” Megan asked.

 

“Well, for the other Chosen Children, the proof of their deepening bonds manifested as a 'crest' on their digivices,” she said. “They symbolized the core values that each partner bond represented. Knowledge, Sincerity, Justice, so on.”

 

Desoto blinked. “Hey- Eleena had that weird charm on her digivice, right?

 

“Yeah,” Megan said, getting excited. “And then later, Devimon evolved into Beezlemon. That must have been her crest!”

 

“I wonder what is symbolized,” Desoto said, tapping his chin thoughtfully.

 

“She must have come to some realization about herself and her relationship with her digimon,” Yokomon said. “The nature of that realization would determine her crest.”

 

“Well, she sure did turn a new leaf after the whole Neodevimon fiasco,” Megan said, leaning back on her hands. “But we don't have _time_ to go through something like that again. I mean, I'm not just willing to wait around and discover some great truth about life, the universe and everything before Agumon and I get to level up. And we don't have years to train, either.”

 

“Why are you in such a hurry to get him to evolve?” Desoto asked.

 

“Well, I mean, look at what we're up against, De!” Megan threw her arms out for emphasis. “We're caught in the crosshairs of two vastly powerful beings. Beezlemon just barely managed to take out one doll, and Vega- I'm still assuming it's Vega- has, like, hundreds of them! Even if we were all still together, I don't know if we'd be able to go up against them again- and on our own like this, it's just me and Greymon, since Angemon doesn't seem inclined to show up again anytime soon.”

 

As soon as the words left her mouth, she realized they had been a mistake- Patamon's ears drooped, and Desoto looked away guiltily.

 

She clapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh- oh no, guys, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-”

 

“No, you're right,” Patamon said firmly. “If I can't do anything to protect you guys- you need to find a way to make up for that.”

 

“Patamon...” Desoto said, looking concerned. Megan quietly kicked herself for running her damn mouth again.

 

“Don't worry, Patamon,” Agumon said. “There's gotta be a way for me to evolve and protect you, and everyone!”

 

Megan turned to Yokomon. “Are you sure there isn't any other way for evolution to happen?” she asked.

 

“Well...” Yokomon looked hesitant. “There is something that might be able to help you. It is an ancient and powerful artifact that the previous Chosen Children found up in the mountains. They entrusted it to our village for safekeeping.”

 

“What does it do?” Desoto asked.

 

“It's difficult to explain,” Yokomon said. “You'll have to see it for yourself. I can arrange for someone to escort you up to the shrine it's kept at.”

 

Megan's mouth pulled down into a grimace. “We have to go outside again?” she said, trying not to let the sudden trickle of terror leak into her voice.

 

“Don't worry, we won't let you freeze half to death this time,” Yokomon said, a little teasingly.

 

The two humans shot each other a look. “Well,” Desoto said, “It's worth a shot, don't you think?”

 

Megan swallowed, shelving her fear. Anything was worth getting an advantage over Vega and The Glitch. “Let's go, then.”

 

~

 

It wasn't a big village, just a circle of houses around a fountain. There were small gardens planted in between the houses, and each door had unique markings on it.

 

But Gabumon couldn't help but notice that it was eerily quiet. His memories were still faulty, but he was pretty sure that digimon villages were usually lively, noisy places, and it was still early evening. There should at least be light shining through the windows, and as far as he could tell, the houses were completely unoccupied.

 

A chill went up his spine. “Something's wrong here.”

 

“This looks like a place we went to once before, when we were still working for Vega,” Cameron said to Eleena. “A whole village got overtaken by the Glitch.”

 

“Well, where are the villagers?” Eleena asked. “I mean, they should be here in _some_ form _,_ right?”

 

“Why do I get the feeling that those are famous last words?” Cameron asked.

 

“What are you talking about?” Eleena snapped.

 

The two started sniping at each other again. Gabumon put his ears back; he _hated_ it when his teammates fought with each other, and these two- well, they just seemed to bring out the worst in each other.

 

He was surprised at Cameron; usually he was more patient than this. He wanted to ask what his problem was with her, but well- those were human affairs. Gabumon got the feeling he just wouldn't understand.

 

Just then, he heard a strange gurgling noise. He looked around, trying to find the source- and realized that it was coming from the fountain in the center of the village, which had inexplicably stopped flowing.

 

“Um… guys?” he pointed. “I don't think that's good.”

 

“What?” Cameron snapped, distracted from his argument with Eleena. “It's just a fountain, what's wrong with it?”

 

Gabumon opened his mouth, but before he could say anything the ground started shaking beneath them.

 

There was a groan, a crunch, and the fountain exploded. Something surged up from the ruins, a white, staticky mass- a glitchmon!

 

It hardly even had a form; just a twitching, gloopy mess of bulging eyes, gaping mouths, and useless, squirming appendages. It rose up from the water, quivering like jelly and making a low, warbling moan.

 

“ _Christ_!” Cameron stumbled back towards the ring of houses. “Gabumon, evolve! Evolve now!”

 

Gabumon stood, staring up in fear and determination as he felt Cameron's will flow into him. He evolved effortlessly, and Garurumon's power gave him the courage to stand his ground.

 

He leapt forward, jaws opening wide to bite down into the monster- but it swatted him away with one thick tentacle. He hit the ground and rolled back to his feet, snarling.

 

The glitchmon opened it's many mouths in unison, and a dozen crackling beams of energy shot out in every direction. The humans scrambled for cover among the houses and Garurumon had to duck low to avoid a beam that sizzled right over his head.

 

He circled it for a moment, looking for an opening in it's writhing appendages. “ _Fox fire!”_ he sent out a jet of blue flame towards it, but it batted it away easily with a waving hand.

 

A long, clawed hand lashed out and caught Garurumon around the throat. He yelped and kicked, trying to free himself- but suddenly the claw went limp, and he slid out of its grip.

 

He looked up to see Devimon standing over him, holding the neatly severed end of the claw in its arms. It disappeared, and it smirked. “You're welcome.”

 

“Devimon, now would be a _great_ time to evolve to that new form of yours!” Eleena yelled. 

 

“Just give me a second, will you?!” Devimon yelled, and had to dive out of the way of a second volley of energy beams. “I can't even stand still!”

 

“I'll cover for you,” Garurumon said, jumping right in front of the glitchmon. “Hey, ugly! Over here!”

 

He seemed to distract it, it's various tentacles and arms swarming towards him. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see a red glow envelop  Devimon where it crouched on the dirt.

 

But before his evolution could complete, he was struck in the chest by a beam- not from the well creature this time, but from something further away.

 

As he fell to the ground with a crash, another figure strode into the circle of houses. It was tall, almost taller than Devimon, with shiny metal plating all over it's body. Exposed wires twined around its fleshy legs, and piercing, blue eyes glowering out from a fearsome, skullish face.

 

It was an Andromon. The information leapt into his head unbidden, like all the memories Vega had suppressed, but this one brought a strange sense of nostalgia with it.

 

It walked towards  Garurumon , seeming  completely  unconcerned by the well-creature. It raised its arm, and its hand began glowing with the same light that had just struck  down Devimon. “Cease your attack, or I will stop you with force.”

 

G arurumon growled low in his throat.“You attacked first,” he pointed out, ignoring the odd idea that he'd  _seen_ this Andromon somewhere before... 

 

“Ugh, yeah,” Devimon grumbled, getting up and dusting himself off. “What's your problem, metal-mouth?!”

 

“Step away from the amalgamation,” the Andromon commanded, ignoring the insult.

 

“What- that thing?” Devimon gestured to the glitchmon, which had retreated back into the fountain slightly, as though afraid of the newcomer. “ _It_ attacked us first, too! Honestly, if you live here, you should be thanking us for getting rid of it for you-”

 

He was interrupted by the Andromon's fist connecting with his face. Hard. The punch sent him flying back past the well, skidding in the sand for a few yards before he de-evolved with a flash.

 

Garurumon leapt forward. _“Blue Bl-”_

 

His attack didn't even have time to form before Andromon nabbed him out of the air. A horrible buzz of electricity ran through him, and he howled out in pain before he was thrown to the ground.

 

He sort of fuzzed out for a second, and by the time he got his senses back, he was back to Gabumon and Andromon was standing over Cameron and Eleena.

 

He tried to scramble to his feet, to run to their aid- but all at once the air was filled with whooping war-cries, and dozens of rookie-level digimon came spilling into the village, weilding short staves and ropes.

 

One of them grabbed Gabumon roughly from behind, and in short order he'd been trussed up and carried over to where the rest of his friends were in similar straits, lying on a heap on the ground.

 

He sighed heavily as he was tossed down beside Cameron. _I already thought this was going to go badly, and it went so much worse_ , he thought, disgruntled.

 

“Thanks for the help, fellas,” Eleena said dryly, still trying to struggle out of her bonds.

 

“Maybe _you_ can fight the monsters next time,” Impmon spat.

 

Gabumon watched as the small army of digimon, overseen by Andromon, surrounded the glitchmon hiding in the fountain. Quick as anything, they had it trapped in some kind of metal mesh net, which they hitched up to two large Unimon that began pulling it away.

 

As soon as that was taken care of, Andromon turned and strode over to them, scowling. “You will be taken to our Lord for judgment for your crimes. I advise you not to struggle; you'll only make it harder on yourselves if you do. You have the right to legal aid, but-”

 

“Hey, captain, wait!” One of the rookie digimon- a young Gazimon- pushed his way to the front of the crowd, and slipped past Andromon to inspect the prisoners.

 

It walked right up to Gabumon, squinting at him hard. Gabumon was, he felt, understandably intimidated; was this digimon going to whack him on the head or something?

 

Just then, the Gazimon's eyes widened, and a shocked, delighted smile spread across it's features. “ _Gabumon_? Is that really _you_?!”

 

“Um.” Gabumon blinked up at it. “...Do I know you?”

 

~

 

“We're almost there!” Motimon called back at them.

 

“You said this would be a short walk!” Megan complained. “My feet are starting to go numb again.”

 

The little pink digimon chuckled. “You humans are so big, you think you'd be a little tougher. This is just a brisk stroll, we have to walk twice this far to reach the mushroom farms every day.”

 

Megan huffed. “Did I just get 'back-in-my-day'ed by a person the size of my foot?”

 

“But old enough to be your grandfather, whippersnapper!” Motimon said cheerily.

 

Desoto put a hand up to stifle a giggle. From within the depths of his shirt, he heard Patamon echo his laugh.

 

They hadn't really been walking that far, but it took longer because they had to match pace with their guide, a friendly in-training digimon who had kept them entertained with stories about life in the village all the way up the tall, craggy hill they were climbing.

 

He appreciated Motimon's enthusiasm, not so much for his own sake, but for Megan's. She tried to hide it but he still noticed how nervous she was about going out into the snow again.

 

Desoto didn't know _why_ she was so scared, but he wasn't about to judge. So he was happy she had something to distract her as they trudged through the deep snow that had piled up last night.

 

At least it was a more comfortable walk this time. For one the storm had quieted down, and since they had no winter gear, Yokomon had given them thick quilts to bundle up in. They looked pretty ridiculous as they made their way up the hill, bundled up like patchwork penguins as they shuffled along.

 

Now that it wasn't blizzarding, Desoto was able to get a better idea of their surroundings. The village was in the middle of a bowl-shaped valley, nestled in a ring of mountains and jagged foothills and surrounded by thick pine forests on all sides. They had been following a frozen river for the last hour and a half or so, looking for the shrine Yokomon had mentioned that morning.

 

Just as he was starting to wonder how much further it would be, Motimon stopped so suddenly that Desoto almost stepped on him.

 

“Alrighty, here we are!” He said, waving one stubby little paw towards a small wooden structure nestled in a ring of pine-trees. Desoto would have missed it entirely if it hadn't been pointed out to him.

 

“Cute,” Megan said. “So, um, are we supposed to go pray there or something?”

 

Motimon shrugged. “Lumme if I know; you humans are the ones who found it in the first place.”

 

“Well, thanks for leading us here,” Agumon said. “You wanna come see what it does?”

 

“Not particularly,” Motimon said. “We digimon stay away from vastly powerful, barely understood ancient artifacts.”

 

“ _You_ digimon do, anyway,” Agumon said. “For us Chosen Digimon, this sort of thing is an occupational hazard.”

 

“I think I'll stick to mushroom farming,” Motimon said firmly. “You folks have a good time; just follow the river back down to the village when you're done.” and he began trundling back down the hill with a brief wave over his shoulder.

 

“Bye, little dude!” Megan called after him. Then she shot Desoto a playful grin. “So? You wanna go see what this thing is?”

 

“Sure,” Desoto said, a little apprehensively. After all the build up, he was starting to seriously wonder what this 'powerful ancient artifact' could be.

 

They walked up to the shrine. It was a very simple structure, three planks of wood nailed together like a bench, and a few more providing a roof for the shiny metal object resting on the bench.

 

As they approached, Desoto got a clear view of the object. It was a squarish metal thing that had obviously been exposed to the elements for several years. Rust was creeping up on its casing and it looked like if you held it funny it would fall to pieces in your hands.

 

But apart from the wear and tear, it didn't look very ancient; in fact, Desoto recognized it immediately as something very modern.

 

It was a laptop.

 

“Well. Not quite what I was expecting,” Megan said, putting her hands on her hips. “...Maybe it's a magical laptop?”

 

“What is it?” Agumon stood on his toes to shove his face over the edge of the bench and sniffing at it.

 

“Um, it's a tool,” Megan said. “You can use it to play games, or talk to your friends, or make stuff… it's sort of like our digivices, I guess. I don't see how it could help us, though.”

 

Suddenly, Desoto was struck with a bolt of inspiration that, in hindsight, seemed stupidly obvious. “Hey Megan, what's this place called?”

 

“What?” she raised her eyebrow at him. “Northwind, that's what Yokomon said, right?”

 

“No, no, this _world_ ,” Desoto clarified.

 

“The Digital world,” Megan and Agumon said at the same time, nonplussed. Then suddenly, Megan's eyes widened. “Ohhh!”

 

“Exactly!” Desoto exclaimed, waving his hands around in excitement. “Everything here is made of data, Vega said something like that! So if we can use this laptop to tap into that data-”

 

“-Maybe we can change stuff in the actual world!” A wild grin spread across Megan's face. “Ohoho, I _like_ how you think!”

 

“Well, it's a theory, anyway,” Desoto said. “Let me see if I can actually use this thing first.”

 

He untucked his shirt, allowing Patamon to crawl out. “Go hang out with Megan for a bit, ok?” he said. “I need to sit down.”

 

“What's he doing?” Patamon asked quietly as they flapped over to land on Megan's shoulder.

 

“Science,” Megan whispered.

 

Desoto could feel their eyes on him as he gingerly picked up the laptop and sat right down in the snow to open it up. Thankfully it did not snap in two as soon as he lifted the lid, and it looked like a completely ordinary laptop inside. He tapped the power on, and it started up immediately- much quicker than any computer he'd ever worked on back home, actually.

 

The display that came up reminded him of working on a machine that ran DOS, just scrolling lines of code, no UI at all. He read down the code for several minutes, frowning; it was complicated, but he actually recognized a lot of the language being used.

 

“Well?” Megan asked eventually, fidgeting in the corner of his eye. “Do you think you can work with it?”

 

“It… will take me a while to learn it,” Desoto said. Then he turned and smiled up her. “But yeah, I think I can.”

 

“Baller,” Megan replied, rubbing her hands together briskly. “Now let's go back down the mountain before we all freeze to death!”


	17. Episode 17- The Trial

Andrew crouched on the ground, his arms curled around his head in a futile effort to protect himself from the Glitch. The sound of grinding and shrieking filled his ears, rattling through his skull as he trembled and cried in fear.

 

But as the seconds ticked past, he realized that he had not, in fact, been devoured. (Or like, blown up, or sucked into the sky, or _whatever_ he'd thought would happen.) In fact, the cacophony of sounds was slowly fading, leaving his ears ringing in it's absence.

 

Slowly, cautiously, he lifted his head.

 

For about three feet in front of him, the world looked completely normal. After that was the whirling maelstrom of chaos that was the Glitch- but oddly… flattened. Like it had run up against something.

 

He looked up- and up and up and _up_ \- and it looked like the glitch had hit the wall of a giant aquarium. It was looming over them, crackling and swirling like a thunderhead, but seemed unable to come any closer.

 

_This… it must be the seal Vega talked about,_ he thought,  blinking .  _It's holding the Glitch back._

 

Next to him, Lopmon got unsteadily to his feet.. “Andrew- we should leave now,” he whispered.

 

Andrew nodded,  speechless. They  seemed safe enough at the moment , but Vega had told them that the seal was decaying. Obviously the Glitch had enough power to make glitchmon even when restrained like this, so it was best if they didn't  stick around for too-

 

“ _ **Well, well, well,**_ ” A deep, warped voice boomed around them, and Andrew froze, all the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. “ _ **If it isn't** **a precious Chosen Child-** **and his** **beloved** **pet.”**_

 

Andrew  swallowed hard, unable to move. Like, his heartbeat and his bloodflow all seemed to pause out of fear. His brain closed up shop and left to find a better economy, and he was left stuck in a half-crouch, staring blankly up at the  G litch.

 

H e felt Lopmon tugging at his shirt, but he couldn't make his legs  start running like they absolutely  _should_ have been . He started wondering if it was possible to just drop dead from pure, unadulterated terror.

 

“ _ **There is no need to look so afraid, human.”**_ The Glitch sounded amused. “ _ **As you can see, I am quite securely contained.”**_

 

“That hasn't stopped you from screwing around with the rest of the world,” Lopmon snarled. His hand was fisted in Andrew's shirt, and he could feel it trembling.

 

“ _ **There are loopholes to my imprisonment,”**_ The Glitch said airily. _ **“But none that would make it possible for me to attack you outright.**_ ”

 

It was only when Andrew realized that Lopmon was standing in front of him protectively that his brain kicked back into gear. Shakily, he forced himself to stand up, immensely grateful that he hadn't wet himself this time.

 

“W-w-we sh-should leave,” he whispered hoarsely, reaching down to grab Lopmon's hand in solidarity.

 

“ _ **Now, now, do you really have to leave so quickly?**_ ” Andrew flinched when he realized that The Glitch could hear him perfectly well. “ _ **I have actually been wanting the chance to talk to one of you face-to-face, so to speak.”**_

 

Andrew gulped. “Y-you talking to-to me?” he squeaked out.

 

“Don't even listen to it,” Andrew!” Lopmon hissed, bu it kept speaking, ignoring him.

 

“ _ **If rumors are to be believed, you are no longer allied with Vega.”**_ The swirling chaos seemed to rearrange itself, like it was settling into a more comfortable position. For a second, Andrew could almost make out the shape of a body in it, a torso, arms, a face- but then his perspective snapped back and he lost it. _**“I was simply wondering if you would be open to a new agreement**_.”

 

Andrew balled his hands up into fists , surprised at the anger those works sparked in him . He may be scared shitless right now, but apparently, there WAS still room left in his body for  other emotions . “M-maybe you should have tried that  _ before _ you sent someone to kill us!” he shouted  back.

 

The Glitch made a movement  that gave the impression of a shrug.  _**“I will make no fabrications about my nature; I am cruel and ruthless, when it fits my need. But if you are no longer working with Vega to bind me down, I have no quarrel with you humans. In fact, if you would help me with a small task, I would be more than happy to give you something in return.** _ ”

 

“What could you _possibly_ do for us?” Lopmon scoffed. “Come on, Andrew, let's leave this thing to it's miserable-”

 

“ _ **I could send you home.”**_

 

Andrew froze again- but not in terror this time.

 

Send them… home? A wild spike of hope lanced through him. He could save himself, save his sister, all of them- maybe they weren't trapped here after all!

 

But the hope was immediately tinged with suspicion. Did The Glitch really have the power to do that? And even if it did, _would_ it?

 

He scowled up at it, crossing his arms over his chest. “Vega gave us the same promise about destroying _you_.”

 

“ _ **Vega was likely lying.”**_

 

“And… you're not?” Lopmon raised an eyebrow. “We have absolutely no reason to trust your word, you realize.”

 

“ _ **No, you don't.** **But-”**_ the Glitch gave the impression of a grin. “ _ **Is your human really willing to take that chance?**_

 

Andrew could feel Lopmon's eyes on him, wide and disbelieving. And he wanted to deny it- wanted to laugh, turn to his digimon and bravely say “No way! Are you kidding?”

 

But… to his own sick surprise, he found himself _wondering_.

 

What if the Glitch really _could_ send them home?

 

 

~

 

“I can't _believe_ you don't remember us!” Gazimon said, gesticulating in irritation.

 

Gabumon gave a sheepish shrug. “Sorry.”

 

He was sitting on a sort of low-slung sledge full of supplies, pulled by a Unimon over the sands. His hands were tied behind his back, his ankles were tied together, and Gazimon was perched on some luggage next to him, trying to engage him in conversation.

 

Impmon and the humans were in the sledge next to them, also bound hand and foot. Impmon was pouting, Cameron looked quietly terrified, and Eleena had rolled over onto her side, sleeping or sulking or maybe planning her escape. 

 

Gazimon hadn't originally wanted to tie Gabumon up, but Andromon had insisted that all of them be restrained until they reached a place called 'Digiopolis,' where they would apparently face the King to decide the punishment for their crimes. 

 

Gabumon was just kind of coasting along by this point. He had no idea why these digimon had been protecting the glitchmon, (which they had wrapped up in a net and were pulling behind them on another sledge. It had been surprisingly docile under their care,) or why they seemed to remember him, or what they planned to do with them once they reached the city, so he decided to just sit tight and go along with it for now.

 

He was too exhausted to evolve again, and even if he could, he knew he'd never be a match for Andromon in his champion form. He was frustrated with his own inability to act, but if her had nothing else, he had patience in abundance. 

 

“Do you remember _anything_ from before you were Chosen?” Gazimon asked.

 

Gabumon shook his head. “I really am sorry.”

 

“I'm not _mad_ , just shocked,” Gazimon said. “Wait- does this mean you don't even remember Bearmon? Or Agumon?”

 

“Um- if it's the same one you're referring to, one of the other Chosen Children has him as a partner,” Gabumon said. “I don't remember a Bearmon,”

 

“Jeeze, kid, you really DO have amnesia,” Gazimon said, astonished. “It's good to know Agumon's ok thought; I remember he-”

 

“Gazimon, have some discretion,” Andromon said sharply. “We can discuss Gabumon's history further when we have our audience with the king.”

 

“Yes sir, sorry sir,” Gazimon said, his ears going flat back against his head. But he turned back to Gabumon and said on a low voice, “We're almost there anyway, so just sit tight. Sorry again about the ropes.”

 

“It's fine,” Gabumon said, and he mostly meant it. The Gazimon was a little overbearing, but he obviously meant well, and was just doing his job.

 

What disturbed him more was that he couldn't remember him in the slightest. He couldn't remember _any_ of this, even though Gazimon had sworn up and down that they used to be friends. After that some of the other guards began to agree, and even Andromon had eventually admitted he might be the same Gabumon they all remembered.

 

When he first woke up from Cameron's digivice, Gabumon had been content to trust Vega and believe that the memories he had were just data that had been planted in his brain, not true lived experience.

 

After they defected… he hadn't really thought about it. He'd been too busy just trying to stay alive and keep his human safe. 

 

But now, he realized that he must have had an entire _life_ before Vega did… _whatever_ it was he did. It was a disturbing thought; how many other people had he forgotten about? Friends, family, places he'd gone, things he'd done… 

 

It was all too much. He really hoped that when they got to Digiopolis, and met this King, that he would have some concrete answers for him.

 

“See?” Gazimon said suddenly, tapping him on the shoulder, and pointed. “It's just up there.”

 

Gabumon followed Gazimon's outstretched hand, and he could see high stone walls appearing on the horizon. As they approached, more and more of a massive, sprawling stone city was revealed to them, built across a wide, rushing river, and rioting with green, growing things.

 

_ Something _ about it tweaked in Gabumon's mind, like a half-remembered dream. He squinted at it hard, trying to chase that feeling. “This… feels familiar, I guess.”

 

“That's good!” Gazimon said, clapping him on the back. “Wait until you meet the king; I'm sure he'll jog your memory.”

 

Gabumon bit his lip, not sure if he was hoping for the same thing- or maybe dreading it. 

 

If nothing else, he hoped that whatever his prior relation was to this place, it might help get his friends a lighter sentence. 

 

It wasn't half an hour before they found themselves at the city gates. Digiopolis was even more impressive from up close, intricately crafted spires reaching up to the sky from behind beautiful white walls. 

 

Andromon approached the guards, who immediately stepped back, bowing their head reverently, and opened the gates. The entire party pressed through, and Gabumon caught his breath sharply as they came out into the sunshine of the main plaza.

 

For a second, it was like waking up after a long, deep sleep. He remembered this place; he remembered walking in and seeing these streets, these buildings, these  _people_ . He could remember walking along, following in the footsteps of-

 

And just like that, the moment was over. The memories were gone, like sand slipping through his claws. He blinked several times and shook his head, looking around in bewilderment.

 

Gazimon was staring at him in anticipation, but he didn't look his way, not wanting to try and put his thoughts into words just yet. The wave of nostalgia had hit him so hard and suddenly that it had almost felt like a physical blow.

 

What  _was_ this place?! When had he been here before?

 

And... who exactly had he been with?

 

~

 

Lopmon stared up at Andrew. His face was unusually blank, and Lopmon felt a twinge of worry. _There's no way he's going to accept… I mean, after everything The Glitch has done, he should know better than to-_

 

Andrew turned away from him, looking back up at the Glitch. “You would send all of us back? All of the Chosen Children?” he asked, his voice skeptical.

 

Lopmon's stomach. “What are you doing?! He's lying, you have to know that!”

 

Andrew didn't reply to him. He just stared up at The Glitch, his hands clenching into the meat of his arms, turning his skin white from the pressure.

 

“ _ **All of you.”**_

 

“Even Eleena?”

 

“ _ **Of course.”**_ The Glitch said, it's voice sickly sweet. _ **“She has ceased to be useful to me, so I have no qualms**_ _ **with letting her leave.”**_

 

“Andrew! We need to leave NOW!” Lopmon was getting desperate. _He can't think… he HAS to know that The Glitch is lying! He can't seriously be considering this… can he?_

 

For a long, tense moment, Andrew stared down at his shoes. His brow was furrowed in thought, and his body was sense, shaking slightly.

 

“...Andrew?” Lopmon asked, his voice small and weak from worry.

 

Suddenly, Andrew lifted his head. He looked down at Lopmon, tears shining in his eyes. “I'm _so sorry_ ,” he choked out, and then ran straight for the barrier.

 

“Andrew!” Lopmon tried to run after him, but his short, useless legs were no match for a human's pace. If only he could evolve he could grab Andrew, stop him-! But when he tried to reach for that power, it was completely cut off from him.

 

His human partner slid straight through the barrier, disappearing from sight. Lopmon ran after him, stopping just short of where the world was cut in two.

 

“No...” he whispered. “No, no! You can't-” he choked, emotion welling up in his chest.

 

“ _ **Well, it's obvious where his loyalties lie,”**_ The Glitch's snide voice sent hot rage licking through Lopmon's chest.

 

He glared at the distorted wall in front of him. “ I  _ know _ you were lying to him!”

 

“ _ **And what exactly do you plan to do about it?”**_ The Glitch was taunting him.

 

Lopmon closed his eyes, his tiny, useless hands clenched into fists.  Andrew had just deserted hi m- that was the only explanation for why he couldn't evolve. Their bond had been severed. 

 

He should have known this would happen. The two of them- it was never meant to work. Their bond was destined to die. Andrew had never cared about him at all, and now he'd left him.

 

The loneliness that swept through him made him feel like he was being ripped in two. Tears began welling up in his eyes, and he shook with sobs. This was it; he should just leave, get himself out of here, leave Andrew to whatever fate the Glitch had in mind for him.

 

But…

 

B ut he could remember Andrew's arms around him.

 

_ I can't stand to see you get hurt for my sake, to- to sacrifice yourself for me.  _ That what he'd said. He'd put himself in danger to protect him, more than once.

 

He had made Lopmon feel like… like he was actually worth something,  for once.

 

W hat had changed? Had that compassion all been a lie? It hadn't felt like it. And Lopmon never would have been able to evolve if Andrew hadn't truly trusted and cared for him.

 

So why had he left? Was getting home so much more important than helping his partner?

 

Or… was there something else going on?”

 

Lopmon wiped his face and sniffed hard, making himself stop crying. He got to his feet. “You don't get to shut me out,” he growled to himself. “Not after everything.”

 

I f Andrew wouldn't tell him what was going on… he'd find him and  _ make  _ him.

 

“ _ **Well?”**_

 

Lopmon took a deep breath, and walked through the barrier.

 

Passing through it made his fur stand up, like a rush of static running through him. He shook himself, wincing in disgust, and looked around.

 

It looked like he was inside some kind of… messed up temple carved out of slick black marble. There were stairs leading forward in several different directions, but they all twisted around in strange, gravity-defying patterns, twisting away endlessly in every possible direction.

 

Lopmon swallowed. He didn't know how he was going to get through this… but he had to try. “If I just start walking, I'll be able to find Andrew eventually,” he told himself, trying to sound confident.

 

He followed his own advice and started walking, heading towards a staircase that seemed to make the most amount of physical sense.

 

But he didn't make it five steps before a heavy mist rose around him. He froze, watching with narrowed eyes as something started moving within the fog.

 

He didn't even have time to prepare an attack before chains erupted from the fog and snatched him up, wrapping around his body so tightly he could hardly breathe. He struggled, trying to break free, but the cold steel wouldn't budge.

 

“ _ **Now that I have you...”**_ The Glitch's voice rang through the chamber, and something rose up from the floor; a huge, flickering green gemstone. _**“You will be an extremely useful asset.** ”_

 

Lopmon could only stare in horror as the  chains began ratcheting forward, pulling his face closer and closer to the gemstone.

 

~

 

Yeah, Digiopolis was magnificent. But Cameron was too pissed off to really appreciate it.

 

He didn't like being tied up. He didn't like being hauled off in a cart like a sack of potatoes. He didn't like being treated like a criminal for defending himself and his friends from a monster!

 

And he really, _really_ didn't like how Eleena had rolled onto her side and proceeded to ignore everything that was going on.

 

He glared at her. She hadn't moved in ages, she might have even fallen asleep- he was tempted to shove her with his feet to find out, but he got the feeling that tied up as she was, she'd manage to find some way to retaliate swiftly and violently.

 

How could she just _lay there?_ They were in trouble, their _digimon_ were in trouble! Who knew that this 'king' they were being taken to would do to them when they arrived at their destination?! He could sentence them to death!

 

Although... Cameron had to grudgingly admit that he couldn't really think of any way to get them out of this situation either. He'd tried to talk to their guards, but they'd just shushed him, and he couldn't figure out any way to squirm out of the cart without being immediately caught.

 

At least Gabumon was doing ok; the little grey rabbit had taken a real shining to him, and he was being allowed to sit up in the front cart like an actual person. Cameron only hoped that he might be given a lighter sentence than the rest of them.

 

He shifted from side to side, watching the digimon that stared at them going by. He figured these guys must not have seen humans before; he wondered what kind of an impression they were getting from a couple of exhausted, dirty teenagers tied up in the back of a cart.

 

Eventually, they went under and archway and entered a long, dark passageway. The carts slowed, and the guards bundled the Chosen Children and their digimon out onto the cold stone path. 

 

One of the guards undid the ropes around his feet and offered him a water-skin. He drank from it gratefully. “So- are we gonna see the king now?” he asked.

 

The guard hesitated for a moment, then looked up questioningly at Andromon, who nodded slightly.

 

“Ok. Cool,” Cameron muttered, wondering if there was a way to slow his heartbeat down. “Hey, Gabumon? You ok?”

 

“I'm fine, Cammie,” Gabumon said, and shot him a strained smile. 

 

“What about you, Eleena?” he asked, and she shot him a glare. “Ookay, never mind.”

 

The Guard pushed at him, gently but insistently, and he let out a sigh and started walking down the tunnel.

 

They walked for a long time, long enough for Cameron's imagination to get entirely out of hand, until he was almost hyperventilating out of nerves. When they finally stepped out into the open, it took a bit for Cameron's vision to adjust to the sudden light.

They had been led into a beautiful garden, so vibrantly green Cameron could hardly believe it existed in the middle of a desert. Decorative streams had been laid out in an intricate pattern through tall clumps of colorful flowers and decorative grass, and cute little cobblestone paths wound around them.

He sucked in a deep breath. This wasn't so bad now, was it? It would be a nice place to have a picnic, honestly.

But his moment of calm was immediately lost as he and Eleena were led to a tall, raised booth near the center of the garden, with built-in shackles. There was a second booth nearby, where their Digimon were led, Gabumon looking as nervous as Cameron felt and Impmon scowling fiercely.

The guards hooked them into the shackles, then stepped back.

“Don't we get a lawyer?” he complained to the one flanking him, and got only an aggressive shushing in return.

“Quiet; The King approaches,” said Andromon. He strode across the paths and the flowers to stand behind the throne, his arms held stiffly at him sides.

Across the way, Cameron could see a procession coming up one of the stone walkways. Proceeded by two small, colorful digimon holding banners, an intimidating figure was walking towards the throne.

Tall, rippling with muscles, and covered in tawny fur, the King looked like a cross between a man and a lion. His wild mane was adorned with shiny rings and beads, contrasting with the simple trousers and tunic he was wearing.

“Hee, it's the Lion King,” he said, half-turning to Eleena, who grunted in low annoyance.

Just then, the King's head turned. He looked directly at Cameron with sharp amber eyes, and Cameron felt all the hair on his arms stand on end in a shivering wave.

He gulped. _We're_ _dead._ _We're_ _SO_ _dead._

“All hail king Leomon!” the digimon around them crowed, and the King took his place on the throne.

 

~

 

Eleena had been very quiet ever since they had been captured.

 

Cameron had tried to goad her into a response several times, but she had refused to even speak to him.

 

He had given her a look of disgust at one point, like 'how dare you be so calm in a situation like this?'

 

If only he knew.

 

If only he knew how _hard_ she was working to hold back the white-hot, livid rage inside of her, to keep it from spilling out from her mouth in a scream. There had been several times she'd had to stop herself from just jumping on him and biting him until he stopped being irritating and scary and _confusing_ like he always was.

 

She was mad at everything right now; mad at Cameron, as per usual, mad at Andromon for attacking HER digimon and carting them off to this dump, mad at the well creature for existing, mad at Impmon for being completely bloody _useless_ against it-!

 

...but most of all, she was just mad at herself.

 

She'd failed again. If she had just done something differently… if she'd made Devimon evolve quicker, maybe they could have beaten that thing _and_ Andromon. Or if she had talked the rest of those idiots out of using the teleporter, they wouldn't have gotten stuck in the desert at all!

 

Or if she'd never been so- so stupid and nearsighted and _whiny_ , she wouldn't have been tricked by the Glitch, and she never would have come here at all. Maybe then the rest of the Chosen Children would have beaten the Glitch and been on their way home already.

 

But no… The Glitch had already captured Impmon, hadn't it? It would have gotten destroyed along with it's 'master.' It never would have gotten to be Beezlemon at all.

 

Eleena sighed. She supposed she'd done _that_ right, at least, getting Impmon away from the Glitch. Even if she'd taken the long way about it.

 

But that didn't do much to dampen her current self-loathing.

 

She stoically accepted her shackles, and when the 'Lion King' sat before them, she met his fierce eyes with a cold gaze of her own.

 

Honestly, she probably deserved whatever was going to happen to her here. But she'd be damned if she was going to let these assholes hurt Impmon.

 

The King began to speak, and she turned her attention to his words. Any escape she could come up with would have to wait until this farce was over with.

 

“It has been a long time since humans have been seen in our land.” He spoke in a deep, commanding tone of voice. “Are the two of you Chosen Children?”

 

“We… we think so,” Cameron said doubtfully, shooting Eleena a glance. “I mean, we have digivices and stuff.”

 

She shrugged, avoiding his gaze. She wanted to stay out of this discussion as much as possible.

 

“I see.” Leomon leaned back in his throne. “Chosen Children are brought into this world to protect it, and protect the digimon that live here. So then why did my chief of guards-” he gestured to Andromon, “- inform me that you were attacking a group of innocent digimon?”

 

“We weren't attacking anyone!” Cameron protested.

 

“Well- I mean, we did kind of attack Andromon,” Gabumon amended. “But he attacked us first! We were just defending ourselves.”

 

“I am not referring to the guards,” Leomon said. His voice was low and calm, but had a hard edge of anger to it. “I refer to the villagers you were terrorizing when they found you.”

 

There was a beat of silence. Eleena frowned, and Cameron looked confused. What villagers? The little town had been empty when they found it.

 

“I- I think he means the Glitchmon,” Gabumon finally said, shocked.

 

“What?” Cameron asked. “But- those aren't really _digimon_ anymore, are they?”

 

An angry hiss went around the garden, all the digimon surrounding them bristling with anger. Andromon's hands clenched into fists, and Eleena could hear the guards behind them muttering and rattling their spears. Even the King looked perturbed, his ears flattening back against his head.

 

“The glitched digimon are _ill,_ ” Andromon said harshly. “You will speak of them with respect, or you will not speak at all!”

 

Cameron blinked. “I-I'm _sorry_ , but- but we were just trying to protect ourselves! And protect you! That's our job right? You said yourself that we're supposed to 'protect the digital world'!”

 

“Do you know nothing of your own purpose here, Chosen Children?” Andromon growled. “You are meant to protect the digital world. You have the power to heal corrupted digimon, and yet you tell us you have been _destroying_ them!”

 

Gabumon stiffened. “Wait- _heal_ them?”

 

“Did you not know?” The King asked. “Digimon that have bonded to humans have the power to channel energy into wounded or corrupted digimon, and heal them… You have been bonded to your human for quite some time, have you not? How did you not know this about yourselves?”

 

Gabumon and Impmon looked at each other and shook their heads, looking disturbed.

 

Eleena wasn't paying much attention to the conversation, more focused on scanning the garden for escape routes. But she noticed when Cameron made a strangled noise beside her.

 

She turned to see that he was hunched over, his eyes wide in horror, his hands clutching at his face. She was surprised; she'd never seen him look this upset before. “You mean… all this time… we've been killing digimon when we _didn't have to_?!” he whispered, sounding sick.

 

Eleena flinched away from him, alarmed. She hadn't honestly thought he would care about something like that; she hadn't thought that guys like him worried about hurting others.

 

But he didn't just look upset; he looked _devastated_.

 

She looked away, perturbed. She didn't want to have to deal with his feeling right now.

 

The King stared at him for a long moment, as though evaluating him. “I ask again; how did you not know this? When you were brought into this world, your digimon should have told you of your duties and your powers.”

 

“We, um- we didn't remember anything, when they first got here,” Gabumon said. “We're still… missing a lot of memories.”

 

“You see,” Cameron started, “When we first got here, there was this spirit called Vega, and we were kinda working with him for a while-”

 

Leomon hissed- actually hissed, like an oversized cat. “You work with _Vega?”_

 

“Not anymore!” Cameron said, trying to hold his hands up in front of him and jerking at the shackles. “He- we didn't wanna do his dirty work anymore. And he wasn't happy about that, so he cut us loose.”

 

“I never worked for Vega,” Eleena chimed in, happy to distance herself from the trainwreck Cameron had found himself in.

 

Leomon sighed heavily, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose. Eventually, he looked up, and waved one large hand. “Release them.”

 

“Are you sure that's a good idea?” Andromon asked.

 

“I sense no malicious intentions from them,” Leomon said. “And if they truly were manipulated by Vega… then I suppose we must have some understanding for their circumstances.”

 

Andromon didn't look happy about the order, but he motioned for the guards to release them. As soon as her shackles were off, Eleena rubbed her wrists, sighing with relief.

 

“So- what do you know about Vega?” Cameron asked. “Who _is_ he?”

 

“Little is known about him at all,” Leomon said tiredly. “But from what we have been able to tell… he imprisoned the Chosen Children that preceded you.”


	18. Episode 18- Monsters and Men

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- Body Horror, some pretty heavy talk about depression and hopelessness.

Desoto typed in the last line of code. “Ok, you guys ready?” he called.

 

Megan and Agumon, standing several yards out in the field, both gave him thumbs-up.

 

He hit enter, and all at once, and Agumon was surrounded by swirling light. His silhouette swelled up, and as the light faded, Greymon stood in his place.

 

So far, so good.

 

“Come on, come onnn,” Desoto muttered, typing frantically into the laptop. “Just a little more-!”

 

Th light swelled up again, and for a moment, Greymon's outline wavered, twisted, began to grow. But just as Desoto's heart lifted with hope, the light shorted out, and he rapidly de-evolved back into Agumon.

 

He sat down heavily on the snow. “Guaaa… I think that's as much as I can do today,” he groaned.

 

“You did good man,” Megan said comfortingly, walking over to help him to his feet.

 

Desoto sighed. “Well. Scratch that theory, then.”

 

They had been working at their little 'project' for days. Sitting outside, freezing their bums off in an unused field just outside of Northwind and trying to make Agumon evolve into his ultimate form without the power of Megan's crest.

 

So far nothing had worked. Desoto had learned a lot about the laptop thought, which was… exciting, but also a little freaky.

 

There were limits to it's powers- or a least, limits to what Desoto could do with it. So far he'd managed to transform matter, (First changing lumps of wood into cups and bowls and little digimon figurines, to the delight of the villagers, later finding out how to make their clothes into more appropriate winter gear,) he'd able to teleport himself and others short distances, (Megan and Agumon had eagerly volunteered, whereas Patamon has literally hissed at him and refused to be a test subject) and he had, for one brief but entertaining moment, managed to reverse gravity inside of Yokomon's house.

 

But he couldn't create matter out of nothing, he couldn't send them home (he had tried, almost immediately,) and he couldn't, for whatever reason, make digimon evolve.

 

It was infuriating. He glared at the laptop. “I just don't understand what's going wrong. As far as I can tell I'm not getting any of the code wrong. Why doesn't it just… _work_?!”

 

“I don't think technology works the same way here as it does in the real world,” Megan said. “It's not like… the laws of physics, where everything follows a strict set of rules. What did Yokomon say? That digimon can use the power of relationships and feelings to bypass their training, right?”

 

“So what, are you saying that this world runs on the Power of Friendship?” Desoto asked.

 

Megan shrugged. “As far as I can tell, yeah.”

 

“So what- we're not good enough friends?” Agumon walked towards them, rubbing at the back of his neck. “I think we get along fine...”

 

“Yokomon said that's not enough,” Desoto argued. “She said you have to be, like, totally in-synch on a primal level. To be totally focused on the same goal.”

 

Megan and Agumon shot each other a look. “Yeah, I mean, I think we've _got_ that,” Megan said, folding her arms. “Maybe we're just not passionate enough about it.”

 

Desoto rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I'm sure that's _your_ problem.”

 

“Maybe I'm just not strong enough,” Agumon said, looking down. “I'm sorry I can't do this for you...”

 

“Oh geeze, Agumon, don't say that!” Megan wrapped an arm around him, tugging him to her side. “I'm sure you can do this! I believe in you.”

 

“Thanks...” Agumon said, but he didn't quite meet her eyes.

 

Desoto frowned. Now that he thought about it, maybe those two _weren't_ perfectly in-synch. When they started these experiments, they had both been excited about it… but Megan seemed to have this deep, unwavering confidence in their own abilities, while Agumon… didn't.

 

“Anyway, we've been out here long enough,” Megan said, giving an exaggerated shiver. “Let's go inside and warm up, we can start again tomorrow.”

 

They walked back to Yokomon's house, and Desoto was thinking hard the whole way. After they had all settled down with some hot tea around the fire, he waited until Agumon was distracted talking with the villagers, and pulled Megan aside.

 

“I wanted to ask you about something,” he said. “Why are you so determined to make this work?”

 

She stared at him over her mug, disbelieving. “Desoto, are you serious? You _know_ what we're up against. If we can't reach the next level soon, we're gonna be totally helpless, caught between Vega and the Glitch.”

 

“But nothing we've done has worked,” Desoto argued. “And I think… I don't think we should keep pushing it.”

 

“Why not?” Megan looked genuinely confused.

 

“Because if you and Agumon aren't ready yet, then, well, you just aren't ready,” he said, sipping at his tea. “Maybe this is just something that takes time. You shouldn't force it.”

 

“We are ready,” Megan gritted out. “We _have_ to be. We don't have a choice. We have to protect everyone- we have to protect _you_!”

 

Desoto stared at her. She was starting to get angry, which made him nervous… but he didn't want to back down. “Megan- I get that. But I would appreciate it if you didn't treat me like a helpless child.”

 

She blinked. “...You are a child, though.”

 

“So are _you_ ,” he pointed out.

 

She sighed. “Sorry. It's not like I think you're incompetent or anything, I just…I feel _responsible_ for you. All of you. If anything happened to one of you guys, and I didn't stop it… I don't know what I'd do with myself.”

 

“You really shouldn't worry so much,” Desoto said, patting her on the shoulder. “Seriously. We're gonna be okay.”

 

“But what if we're _not_?” her hands clenched around the mug so hard Desoto was worried it was gonna break. “Desoto, if Agumon doesn't learn to evolve, someone could get _killed_. And if that happens, and I could have stopped it- then it's my fault. If I can't protect you-if I can't protect you, then I'm not worth anything!”

 

She had gotten louder and louder through her speech until by the end of it, everyone in the room was staring at them.

 

Her face was flushed, she coughed and straightened up, smiling sheepishly. “Ah- sorry about that, guys, I was just-”

 

But the rest of her words were drowned out by a crash from outside. The ground shook beneath them, and Desoto grabbed onto her in terror, his cup smashing to the ground.

 

“Jesus!” Megan yelped, clinging to him. “What was that?”

 

“Let's go see,” Agumon said, jumping to his feet.

 

The four of them raced outside, Patamon landing on Desoto's head as they got through the door. He came to an abrupt halt, staring up in disbelief as through the forest, it's massive feet crashing to the ground with each step, came a doll bigger than any they had faced before.

 

~

 

Andrew felt lost in time as he wandered through The Glitch.

 

It seemed like he'd been walking forever, but his legs didn't hurt at all. When he burst through the barrier, he had been confronted with a maze of stark white halls, like the inside of a hospital only more twisting and without another person in sight.

 

Soon, he had become hopelessly lost. Every turn he took, every door he walked through, every stairway he climbed led him further and further from the world he knew, and he could only hope that somewhere in here was the answer he was looking for.

 

It made him feel like a lab rat, searching in vain for the button that would dispense the promised cheese. Or did the button give them an electric shock? He couldn't remember how lab-rat mazes worked.

 

The Glitch hadn't spoken to him since he had crossed the barrier. He'd shouted at it for a while, demanding that it answer his questions, fulfill it's promise. But his voice was met with silence, and eventually he was forced to give up and start walking.

 

He wasn't getting physically tired, but mentally, he was wearing down. He felt so stupid; of course the Glitch hadn't wanted to really help him. It had just wanted to lure him into this damn maze and trap him here.

 

He should have listened to Lopmon while he had the chance. He was a terrible partner.

 

Whatever happened to him in here… he probably deserved it. “The average lab rat's probably got one over on me in the brains department,” he muttered to himself.

 

“ _ **Now, I think you're being a little hard on yourself.”**_

 

His head jerked up. “Ok, so NOW you decide to talk to me,” he snapped, trying to keep his voice steady even as his pulse raced with fear.

 

“ _ **I've been watching you,”**_ The Glitch said, casually, conversationally. _**“I'm surprised at your tenacity. When faced with a maze like this, most humans would just curl up in a corner somewhere and wait to die.”  
**_

“You said you'd send me home,” Andrew said quietly, but that was starting to feel like more and more of a flimsy excuse.

 

The Glitch's voice took on an amused, mocking edge.  _**“Did I say I'd do it for free?”** _

 

Andrew swallowed. “Lopmon said I shouldn't trust you, and I have to admit I'm inclined to believe him.”

 

“ _ **Don't be like that,**_ ” the soft, staticky voice whispered to him. It seemed to weave itself around him, insinuating itself in his brain. _**“What I'm asking you to do wouldn't be that hard.**_ ”

 

“What...” Andrew's voice caught, then rose tremulously. “What do you want me to do?” _._

 

“ _ **It's simple; I want you to destroy the seal and set me free. If you do that, I will send you and your friends home**_.”

 

Andrew's eyes widened. “But- but if you do that, you'll destroy the digital world!”

 

“ _ **And why does that matter to you so much?”**_ The Glitch asked. _**“This world isn't real, little human. It's just made up of pixels and data. Destroying it would be like… deleting a computer game.”**_

 

“I couldn't- I couldn't even help you anyway!” Andrew stammered, spreading his arms helplessly. “I can't do anything without Lopmon's help, and you sure as hell aren't gonna convince him to help you anytime soon!”

 

“ _ **I can find another digimon partner for you**_ ,” the Glitch said casually, like it was suggesting it could buy him a new pair of shoes. _**“I just need the help of your human emotions**_.”

 

“I-I don't- I can't see...” Andrew kicked uselessly at the floor.

 

M aybe the Glitch was right. Maybe this world wasn't real. But still… 

 

_ Still… _ it  _ felt _ real enough.

 

Finally, he let out a sigh, and squared his jaw, looking up at the ceiling. “I can't do it. I'm sorry.”

 

“ _ **Then you can't help your friends, either**_ **.”**

 

The flat, cold words made Andrew's stomach drop. If he refused, would  the other Chosen Children be stuck here forever? Would  _ he _ be?

 

_ It doesn't matter, _ he told himself.  _ It's the right thing to do. _

 

But he still felt sick at the thought.

 

“ _ **But then again… what use have you ever been to your friends anyway?**_ ” The Glitch's voice was sly. _**“From the very beginning, you've just been dragging them down**_.”

 

“No,” Andrew said. He clenched his hands into fists. “No, you don't get to say that. You haven't seen anything I-”

 

“ _ **I don't need to see anything; I can smell it, child.”**_ He can  could _hear_ the  cruel smile that would be twisting the Glitch's face if it were human. _**“From the moment you walked in here, you stank of guilt and shame. You know you're worthless, you know you can only borrow power from others. You've known that for a long time.**_

 

“SHUT UP!” Andrew yelled, clapping his hands over his ears, not wanting to hear anymore- but the Glitch just laughed, and the sound rang through his head.

 

“ _ **Look at you; you're pathetic,”**_ the Glitch said, almost gleeful, now. _**“It wouldn't even matter if you'd never come at all. Your friends would be better off without you. EVERYONE would be.”**_

 

Andrew crashed to the floor, bruising his knees  as he fell, hot tears spilled out of his eyes. “ You're  _ wrong!” _ he  sobbed, but he didn't believe his own words. He could feel himself breaking inside, cracking along fracture-lines in his soul.

 

“ _ **But you don't have to stay this way.”**_ The voice suddenly softened. “ _ **I can make you better. I can make you stronger. All you have to do, is do this one little favor for me… and I can give you everything you want.**_ ”

 

Andrew sat there for a moment, his breath hitching. He wiped his face along his sleeve. “Go to hell,” he spat out.

 

Suddenly, the walls closed in around him, shrinking until he was stuck in a tiny, stark-white box, too small to even sit up in.

 

“ _ **I'll let you think it over**_ ,” the Glitch said dryly. “ _ **You know you only have one option.”**_

 

And then… silence.

 

Andrew curled up around himself. Now that he had used up his anger, he had no defense for the depression that welled up around him, drowning him.

 

_ It's right _ , he thought to himself.  _ I am worthless… I haven't done anything for anyone.  Not in my whole life. _

 

He rubbed his face against the rough fabric of his jeans.  _ If I do what it wants, I'll be the worst kind of monster. But if I don't…. I'll be stuck here forever.  I'll have failed all my human friends. _

 

_ I deserve this , _ he though.  The tears began to dry up, and he could feel a quiet numbness creeping over him; a last-ditch defense against the pain.  _ I deserve to be left here alone. _

 

So he stayed there, his arms wrapped around his neck, his face resting against his knees, and let himself disappear into his own emptiness.

 

~

 

Megan stared up at the doll, her eyes wide and her limbs feeling like they were frozen in place.

 

Back in the forest, it had taken Devimon's miraculous evolution into Beezlemon to beat one of these things- and that one had been _half_ the size of the behemoth currently bearing down on them at an alarming speed.

 

She whipped her head back and forth, looking frantically at the village around them. Digimon were spilling out of their houses, calling to each other, making an emergency evacuations.

 

If they couldn't even defend themselves- how were they supposed to protect these innocent digimon?!

 

All her worst nightmares were coming true, and she was _helpless_ to stop it.

 

She felt Desoto tugging on her shirtsleeve. “Come on- we have to run,” he hissed, his voice shaking with fear. “We can help get the villagers to safety-”

 

Something inside her snapped, at that. She refused to run- refused to be helpless anymore.

 

When she turned to Desoto, her gaze was set, and she was burning inside with a cold, focused rage. “Give me the laptop,” she said. “I'm not running.”

 

He looked scared. “I-Megan, I don't think-”

 

She grabbed it out of his hands, not waiting for him to try and talk her out of it. “Agumon, are you ready?” She called to her digimon, kneeling down in the snow and opening the computer. “We're doing it now.”

 

“Megan, I- I don't think I can do it!” he protested, wringing his hands.

 

The doll was getting closer and closer- she didn't have _time_ for this. “Yes you _can_ ,” she gritted out.

 

The evolution code was still up on the screen. She closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath. _Feelings turn into power, right? I can do that. I can_ power _him,_ she thought, determinedly.

 

So she channeled all of her feelings into her hands; all her rage, her fear, the vicious, cold desire to _destroy_ the people who dared to hurt the ones she loved. She was so full of these emotions that she could practically feel them rolling off her in waves, could feel them tingling down to the tips of her fingers.

 

When she pressed the enter key down, it was like a volcanic eruption inside of her. She felt power rushing through her, out of her, roaring like a dragon. She pushed that energy forward, channeling it into Agumon.

 

 _Grow,_ she thought, _Grow more, grow faster, grow stronger- beat that thing,_ destroy _it-!_

 

She could feel the energy building up in him, swelling, expanding, _growing_ , beyond Agumon, beyond Greymon, more, more, _more-!_

 

And then suddenly, her focus was ripped away as something shoved her from the side, toppling her into the snow and sending the laptop skidding out of her hands.

 

She pushed herself up, angry and bewildered, to see Desoto standing over her. “Dude, not cool! What was that for?!”

 

“What are you _doing_?!” he yelled, his eyes wild. “Can't you see you're _hurting_ him?!”

 

She turned- and her breath caught in her chest when she saw what was happening to her digimon.

 

Greymon was standing where Agumon had been a moment before, but something was _wrong._ He was clutching at his head, groaning in agony as his skin writhed and twisted over his body, like his bones were trying to burst out of him.

 

The evolution glow surrounding him had turned a sickly, rotten shade of yellow, and he was glitching and fuzzing out like- oh god, like he was being _corrupted_.

 

With shaking hands, she searched for the laptop, unable to take her eyes off her digimon. She grabbed it up. “N- no,” she murmured. “Not- I didn't mean for this to happen!

 

She whipped her head around. “Desoto, what do I do? How do I make it stop?!”

 

“I don't know!” he shouted, clearly terrified.

 

The laptop started beeping, red error text scrolling down the screen. She stared at it, helpless, unable to understand what was happening.

 

Presently, the sickly light enveloped Greymon completely. It stretched, flickering and strobing, then burst out in a violent flare, revealing the evolution he had reached- that she had _pushed_ him to.

 

A massive, draconic skeleton stood before them, head and shoulders taller than the doll, which was watching them with it's head cocked to one side like a curious child.

 

A mass of pulsing orange flesh ran up through his spinal column, sticking up from his back like a parasitic worm. His face didn't make sense, his oversized lower jaw hanging open and his teeth sticking out at jagged angles.

 

Long bony fingers flared out from the sides of his rib cage like spider legs, and on his head was a six-foot long spike, criss-crossed with fracture lines.

 

Megan barely had time to take the monstrous sight in, before a piercing, horrible scream filled her head.

 

She clapped her hands over her ears, but it didn't help- the sound was inside of her. She fell to her knees, her stomach churning as the sound rose in pitch, then split apart into a hellish chorus.

 

Somehow, she knew exactly where the noise was coming from- it was her digimon.

 

He was _screaming_.

 

She joined him.

 

~

 

Lopmon's eyes were screwed tight against the light coming off the gem. He didn't know what it would do to him, but he got the distinct feeling that it would be something horrible.

 

He was so tensed up, so ready for pain or death or _whatever_ was going to happen, that it took him a minute to realize that… nothing _had_ happened. The chains were still holding him tight, the green light was still burning through his eyelids, but he hadn't been- blown to bits, or corrupted, or whatever was supposed to have happened to him.

 

Slowly, hesitantly, he opened his eyes. The gem was still there, as were the chains, and the obsidian walls.

 

Nothing in the chamber had changed at all.

 

“Umm...” he said quietly. “Was- was something supposed to happen there?”

 

There was silence. A very conspicuous, awkward silence.

 

“Er… hello? You still there?” He couldn't help but be just a _touch_ amused, even though he didn't trust that the danger was over yet. “Do you… just need a minute, or-?”

 

“ _ **That shouldn't have- how did you- it was supposed to-!”**_ The Glitch sounded _flustered_. It was an odd  emotion to hear from a deep, booming voice like that. _**“What did you do?!”**_

 

A slow smile spread across Lopmon's face. “Sooo…. Looks like you  _ aren't _ all powerful. Not even within your own world.”

 

He looked around  himself again. “What even is this place?” he wondered out loud. “Is it your  _ body _ , or what? Did you create it yourself?”

 

“ _ **You shouldn't be able to resist corruption**_ **,** ” the Glitch ground out. _**“There is something- something WRONG about you.”**_

 

The chains tightened around him, and he choked for a second, all the fear flooding back.

 

But even through the fear, his  mind kept working.  _ If this is his world…. It follows his rules, right? It's under his power. And I'm… I'm not affected by his power?? For some reason??? _

 

_So is this place even real? Or is it just a big illusion? I wonder… if I'm really not affected by the Glitch's power, can I just-_

 

He took a deep breath, and consciously relaxed himself. His eyes slipped shut, and his breathing slowed.

 

“ _ **What are you doing?**_ ” The Glitch asked flatly. It had lost it's usual slimy confidence. _**“You can't escape, you know. Whatever you're doing, stop it!**_ ”

 

Lopmon ignored it. Concentrating  on the idea of th is place being purely an illusion,  he tried to move his arm.

 

It slid right out of the chains.

 

The Glitch made an awful spluttering, choking sound.

 

He slipped out of his bonds. His feet hit the floor, and he opened his eyes. “Well then.”

 

“ _ **You- no- stop that!**_ ” The Glitch's voice rose a few octaves in fear and desperation, and Lopmon couldn’t restrain a giggle at the sound. 

 

Entirely fearless now, he wandered up to the green gem. “What _is_ this thing, anyway?” he asked, and reached out to place his paw on it's surface.

 

All at once, his surroundings changed. The gem disappeared, the walls closed in around him until he was stuck in a little obsidian box.

 

The voice was conspicuously absent once more. Lopmon grinned widely as he walked forward and just… went straight through the wall.

 

As he stepped out, his first thought was that he was standing on a vast chessboard. As far as he could see in each direction, there stretched a vast, black-and-white grid, with numbers on each square. Above him was an endless white void that made him feel a little sick and dizzy to look at for too long.

 

He started walking, not sure about which direction to go. But after a while, he found out that he didn't have to move like normal; if he concentrated just right, he could move great, leaping strides with every step he took.

 

So in short order he was racing off, his feet barely touching down on the grid as he covered incredible distances in seconds.

 

Eventually, he caught sight of something ahead of him; a figure slumped over on the ground, curled up into itself.

 

It was a human.

 

“Andrew!” he called, racing over to his partner's side.

 

Andrew was slumped forward, his head pillowed in his crossed arms. He looked up at the sound of Lopmon's voice, and his eyes were rimmed with red like he'd been crying. “L-Lopmon?”

 

“I- Thank goodness you're ok,” Lopmon said, sighing deeply from relief. Then he scowled, getting up in Andrew's face. “Thanks for _nothing_ , by the way. Why the hell did you abandon me back there?”

 

Andrew curled up even tighter. “I'm sorry,” he whimpered, wrapping his arms around his knees.

 

“I don't want an apology, I want an explanation,” Lopmon insisted, getting right up in his face. “What were you thinking?! You _had_ to know the Glitch was lying to you!”

 

He looked away. “...he might not have been,” he mumbled, seeming unconvinced by his own words.

 

Lopmon growled indignantly. “So what? You were just going to abandon my world to the Glitch's mercy?”

 

“No!” Andrew insisted. “I- I mean- I wasn't thinking about that.”

 

“You weren’t thinking period,” Lopmon huffed, crossing his arms. “If you and your friends went home, our world would _die,_ Andrew. I know you didn't sign up for this, but if you don't help us save ourselves-”

 

“I can't _do_ that,” Andrew said, frustrated. “I'm so sorry for leaving you behind, but… I can't save your world, Lopmon.”

 

“Yes you can!” Lopmon threw his arms up in the air in frustration. “You're a Chosen Child! It's what you're _here_ for!”

 

“Well, I shouldn't be!” Andrew uncurled and scooted away from Lopmon. He wrapped his arms around his knees and looked away, ashamed. “I'm not- I'm not a hero. I'm not brave, or good, or- or anything. I'm just a scared, _useless_ little boy, and I thought- I thought, if I could get my friends back home… at least I could do _something_.”

 

Lopmon stared at him. “...Is that really what you think?”

 

Andrew sighed and dropped his head back into his arms. “God, you're right. I'm a coward, I was just- I was being stupid, and selfish, and-”

 

“Andrew, _no.”_ Lopmon ran up to his human partner, and put a gentle hand on his knee. “You're not any of those things, Andrew!”

 

“Yes I _am_!” Andrew practically shouted, shoving his away. “I'm _worthless_! I've done nothing since I got here but drag everyone down, and I- god, it would just be better if I didn't exist.”

 

He was starting to cry. He wiped furiously at his own eyes, his chest hitching with uneven breath, looking mad at himself. “You should just leave me here. I'm sorry. If I stay here- I can't hurt anybody anymore. It's… for the best.”

 

Lopmon watched him for a moment, at a loss for words. Watching Andrew curl in on himself, wrapping himself up in his own depression… it was sparking a strange feeling in Lopmon's stomach.

 

Finally, he realized what it was; he felt like he was looking at _himself_. Those feelings of helplessness, of worthlessness, of _emptiness_ _…_ that was how Lopmon felt all the time. He'd had no idea his partner felt the same way.

 

Seeing this reflection of himself… he should have hated it. He hated those feelings, didn't he? And didn't he hate himself for feeling them?

 

But looking down at Andrew… he could find nothing in himself but compassion for what he must be going through. How much it must _hurt_.

 

Finally, he sighed, and sat down in front of his human. “… A worthless person wouldn't have saved my life.”

 

Andrew looked up at him, almost suspiciously. “...I didn't save you for selfless reasons,” he mumbled into his knees.

 

“It doesn't matter,” Lopmon said firmly. “You don't have to be selfless. I'm not selfless, _no_ one is. But you cared about me- you saved me.”

 

“You wouldn't have died anyway,” Andrew said, tugging aimlessly at the hem of his jeans. “Garurumon would have-”

 

“That's not what I'm talking about,” Lopmon said. “It wasn't just when you protected me with your body- although I'm not going to let you say that wasn't amazing because it was- you _being_ there saved me.”

 

He took a deep breath; this was going to hurt. He didn't want to open up the feelings locked inside of him. But he had to do it. For the sake of his partner, he had to open that door. “There's something… wrong with me. Something inside of me is broken. I don't know what it is, or how to fix it… those dreams I was telling you about- those are part of the problem.”

 

Andrew was watching him now, his eyes wide and his brow knit in concern. Lopmon had to look away to muster the courage to keep talking.

 

“When I woke up from the digivice… I felt so _empty_ inside.” His hands shook, and he wrapped his arms around himself, forcing the words to keep coming. “I… all I wanted was to disappear.”

 

“Lopmon...” Andrew's voice was so heavy with concern that it almost broke Lopmon's heart.

 

He had to fight back tears before he could keep talking. “But you changed that. You _cared_ about me, even though you didn't have to, even though I know you never asked to be my partner.”

 

“Lopmon, I don't-” Andrew started, sitting up straight.

 

He held up a paw. “Please let me finish. This is important.” He took a deep, steadying breath. “You made me realize that there was something worth fighting for. _Living_ for. You gave me… you gave me your trust, and your love, when I didn't feel like I deserved it.”

 

“Oh, Lopmon,” Andrew whispered. He moved, folding his legs under him and leaning forward, his eyes tight with emotion. “You _do_ deserve it. I know you do”

 

“Then why can't you see that _you_ deserve it too?” Lopmon demanded. The tears were coming now, whether her wanted them to or not. “Andrew- everyone loves you. I don't understand why you can't _see_ that.”

 

Andrew stared at him. “I- I don't… I'm not- I don't understand _why_ ,” he said, clenching his hands into fists.

 

“Maybe you don't have to, not yet,” Lopmon said, using his ear to wipe at his eyes. He stood up, and put his hands on his hips. “But you have to _see_ it. Do you have any idea how devastated we'd be if something happened to you? Me, your sister, Desoto, Cameron… do you know how precious you are to them?”

 

“It- it's so hard.” Andrew clutched at his chest. “It _hurts_.”

 

“I know,” Lopmon said. “But it's worth it. I really believe that now.”

 

Andrew put his head down, and his shoulders shook.

 

Lopmon leaned in, and gently put his hands on either side of Andrew's face. “You don't really want to stay here, do you? You want out, right?” he asked gently.

 

And with a small, broken noise, Andrew folded his arms around Lopmon's body. “I-I want out!” he sobbed. “I want out of here. It hurts so much. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry… please, don't leave me here alone.”

 

Lopmon hugged him hard, willing the love he felt to reach his partner. “I won't leave you. I promise.”

 

And suddenly, he felt an incredible warmth rushing into him, pulsing beneath his skin. It flowed through his body, tingling, almost burning, and he felt himself starting to evolve.

 

He shifted into Turuiemon, and Andrew was the one in his arms, now, held fast against his chest. But the energy still coursed through him, overwhelming everything else as he felt himself evolve _again_.

 

He thought he heard the Glitch shouting something, but it was lost in the sudden, _incredible_ power swirling through him.

 

He grew, half a story, a story, two stories tall. He felt his body stretch and bend to accommodate the energy rushing through his veins.

 

And just like that, it was done; Andrew was cradled in his hands, suddenly tiny. A laugh bubbled out of Antylamon's throat at the sight.

 

_Antylamon_ . It felt good to have  that  part of his memory restored, as he realized that this was his Ultimate evolution.

 

Andrew was staring up at him in awe, hastily wiping the tears off his red face. “Whoah. You- you're big!”

 

Antylamon laughed again, loud and delighted, spinning in place. He felt like dancing in celebration, but there were more important matters to attend to. “C'mon, let's blow this joint!”

 

He bent his knees and jumped, shooting through the air like he'd been fired from a cannon. He crossed miles in a single bound, and a second leap sent him careening straight through the barrier that held back the Glitch. He hit the ground, and it trembled beneath his powerful feet.

 

They were free.

 

He didn't even wait for the Glitch to get a word in edgewise before he jumped again. He just kept jumping, fields of flowers rushing past below him and the sea drawing up on the horizon, until finally, they reached the shore.

 

As soon as he set Andrew soft on the soft, sandy beach, he de-evolved, suddenly exhausted. He sat down hard, sighing with relief. He could hardly believe that they'd actually managed to escape from the Glitch!

 

He looked up at Andrew, who's hair was all messed up from their wild ride, and suddenly felt incredibly self-conscious. He felt like he should gloss over their embarrassing sharing of emotions as quickly as possible.. “Hm. Well, that's over with,” he grunted, dusting himself off. “I guess next, we should- ack!”

 

Andrew has grabbed him and wrapped him in another tight, enveloping hug. He nuzzled his face up against Lopmon's cheek, and tears trickled onto his fur.

 

“Thank you,” he whispered. “ _T_ _hank you._ ”

 

Lopmon was stiff for a moment, then relaxed, returning the embrace. “...Thank _you,”_ he whispered back.


	19. Episode 19- Facing Fears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- Mentions of past physical abuse, mentions of killing digimon, existential despair.

“Wait- there were other chosen Children?” Cameron asked, his eyes wide.

 

Leomon nodded gravely. “I knew them personally. They came to this world during a time of great peril, and they saved my life and the lives of my people many times over.”

 

“And you said Vega… imprisoned them?” Gabumon asked, walking over to stand by Cameron's side, absently rubbing his wrists.

 

“It is a long story, and a sad one,” Leomon said.“I will attempt to summarize it as best I can.”

 

He looked pensively off into the distance for a moment, then sighed heavily and began to speak. “I don't know exactly what happened. But one day, they simply… stopped contacting us. For several weeks, they neither visited the city nor sent us any communications. We were concerned, but before we could attempt to find them… the Glitch appeared.”

 

“It devastated the land,” Andromon said quietly. “It was spreading across the world, corrupting everything that it touched. We were helpless against it.”

 

“The Chosen Children- they fought against it valiantly,” Leomon said. “We joined them in the final assault- they were willing to die to protect the world that we all held so dear.”

 

He closed his eyes, his face contorting with anger. When he spoke again, his voice shook with rage. “And that's when V _ega_ appeared.”

 

Andromon laid a hand on his shoulder. “He captured the Chosen Children and their Digimon partners. And he used their powers to create the barrier that sealed away the Glitch.”

 

Cameron's jaw dropped. “He did _what_?!”

 

“He twisted them,” Leomon said, his voice rough with emotion. He was holding himself together, but his hands shook on the arms of his throne. “Used their bonds, the sacred energy that came from their digivices and crests… and he sealed their life-forces away alongside the glitch.”

 

There was a moment of silence as the king bowed his head, looking almost overpowered by grief. Andromon's hand moved to his shoulder, and Leomon reached up to clasp it in his own.

 

Cameron felt sick to his stomach. He'd known Vega was shady, but this… this was what they had been following? Someone who wanted to kill innocent digimon, and was ok using human children as a freaking _power source_?

 

And they'd listened to him. They'd done exactly what he wanted. If they hadn't finally rebelled against him… what would have happened?

 

“Let me guess,” Eleena said dryly. “He was planning to feed us into that thing, wasn't he?”

 

Cameron glared at her. She looked completely impassive; hadn't Leomon's story disturbed her in the slightest?

 

But Leomon just inclined his head slightly. “That may well be true. The barrier has been growing weaker and weaker as the years have passed… He may have been planning to use your powers to strengthen it.”

 

“That also explains why the Glitch wanted you lot dead,” Impmon said. “Well, us lot, now. It doesn't want Vega to shore up the barrier.”

 

“So we have two superpowered eldritch horrors out for our blood, for two slightly different reasons,” Eleena said. “Fantastic.”

 

“You are not helpless against them, however,” Leomon said. “If Vega had not captured them, I am certain the previous chosen Children would have been able to defeat the Glitch. “

 

“They were stronger than us though, weren't they?” Gabumon asked.

 

Leomon fixed his gaze on him. “You… you were here once before, weren't you?”

 

“So I've been told,” Gabumon said awkwardly. “One of your guards informed me that I used to know the Chosen Children, but I don't have any memories of that time.”

 

“Hmm.” Leomon tapped a finger against his chin. “Yes, the previous Chosen Children were incredibly powerful. They were able to help their digimon partners evolve into their ultimate forms, with the power of their crests.”

 

“You mentioned 'crests' before,” Eleena said. “What are those?”

 

“You have one,” Leomon said. “Look at your digivice.”

 

She took it out of her pocket and held it up, frowning. “What- this?” she gestured to the little red heart that hung off it like a keychain.

 

“Yes,” Leomon said. “Your crest is a physical embodiment of your most valuable core virtue. Has your digimon been able to evolve further since you got it?”

 

She looked down at Impmon. “Y-yeah, actually.”

 

“I recognize that crest,” Leomon said. “It is the crest of Love.”

 

Eleena turned beet red, clenching her fist around her digivice.

 

Impmon started cackling. “Nawww,” he teased her, elbowing her in the hip. “You got that because you WUV me so much!”

 

“Shut up, Raggedy Ann,” Eleena hissed. “It's your crest too!”

 

Cameron rolled his eyes. What did she know about love?

 

“What about us?” Gabumon asked. “What will our crest be?”

 

“There is no way to know until you have earned it,” Leomon said. “I suggest that you reflect on what you and your partner both value and strive for.”

 

Cameron bit his lip, intimidated. He wasn't one much for introspection, and as far as he'd figured, he and Gabumon had been assigned together by complete random chance.

 

Was there some inherent bond of shared values between them? Vega was the one who had called them into this world… maybe he'd picked them completely at random, and they weren't truly compatible.

 

Leomon rose to his feet. “We can continue this discussion in the morning. For tonight, we will provide food and sleeping quarters for you. I hope you enjoy your stay in Digiopolis.”

 

“Thank you,” Cameron murmured, and the sentiment was echoed by Gabumon. Eleena and Impmon were too busy having some kind of silent argument to chime in.

 

The King got up from his throne, followed by Andromon and his honor guard. The rest of the guards collected the four of them, leading them off to their rooms, and Cameron let out a deep breath he hadn't even known he'd been holding.

 

_I don't know how we made it through that without getting our heads cut off_ , he thought, _but I'm certainly glad I did._

 

~

 

Desoto could only watch in horror as the- the _monstrosity_ that Agumon had turned into began lumbering forwards, the ground shaking beneath its feet. It charged the doll, roaring a challenge in it's terrible, fractured voice.

 

Megan was curled up on the ground next to him, her arms clamped over her head, _screaming_. Desoto stumbled to her side, falling to his knees. He shook her. “Come on, snap out of it!” he hissed, desperate, but she didn't respond to his voice.

 

With trembling fingers, he fumbled his digivice out of his pocket and pointed it towards Agumon's corrupted evolution.

 

For a moment, the screen fuzzed out in static- but then it flickered back to normal, and the word _Skullgreymon_ appeared in flickering letters.

 

He swallowed hard. This was just like Eleena and Neodevimon; but this time, it was a digimon they knew and loved. And the Glitch hadn't even touched Agumon; Megan had done this herself with the laptop.

 

Wait- the laptop! It was lying in the snow a couple feet away. If he could get to it, maybe he could fix this entire disaster.

 

He scrambled forward to grab it, but before his fingers could even touch the casing, there was a tremendous sound of ripping metal, followed by an explosion that rocked through the entire valley.

 

Desoto looked up to see Skullgreymon towering above them, the upper half of the doll's torso hanging limply from it's jaws. The doll's lower half stood for a few moments, a dark plume of smoke rising to the sky from it's ruined body, before it slowly toppled into the forest with a tremendous crash.

 

Skullgreymon squeezed it's jaw down, and the doll's upper body was shattered into thousands of pieces, raining down from Skullgreymon's mouth like so much loose cereal. Then it turned, hauling it's massive, misshapen body around to face the village.

 

Desoto was helpless to do anything but stare as the monster opened it's mouth, far wider than seemed natural, practically unhinging it's jaw. A light flickered deep in it's throat, growing and growing, and a high whine rose in the air as it prepared what would surely be a devastating energy attack.

 

It looked like an avenging god, and as Desoto watched it prepare to wipe Northwind off the face of the earth, he felt sure that it wouldn't stop until it had destroyed them, the village, and the entire mountainside.

 

_I'm going to die here_ , he thought, stunned, beyond terror or grief- to shocked to feel anything.  _Me, Megan, all of these digimon we were supposed to protect… we're all going to die._

 

He looked to his side; Megan had finally passed out, laid out cold beside him. Reaching out a clumsy hand, he touched the side of her slack, unconscious face. Her skin was cool to the touch and damp with sweat.

 

All of a sudden, he felt  _mad_ . She hadn't meant for this to happen- she'd just been trying to protect the people she loved.

 

They both had.

 

He swallowed roughly. Then, forcing his terror-leadened limbs to move, he climbed to his feet. He fixed Skullgreymon and the beam of energy welling up in it's gaping, awful maw with a determined scowl.

 

If this was going to be his end- he was going to face it on his feet.

 

All of a sudden, a burst of white light surrounded him. He looked around, bewildered- and then his eyes widened as Angemon soared over his head, holding his staff aloft as he flew towards Skullgreymon.

 

He struck Skullgreymon's head, snapping it to the side. The devastating energy attack it had been preparing got spat out sideways, hitting a mountain peak miles off with an echoing _boom_.

 

It turned, snarling, and swiped one massive claw at Angemon, but the winged digimon was too fast for it. He darted in close, shoved the end of his staff into a gap in it's skeleton, and a blaze of golden light seared up through it's ribcage.

 

There was a horrible,  stuttering scream that echoed through the air, and a flash of light so strong it le f t Desoto sightless for a moment.  When his vision cleared- Angemon and Skullgreymon were nowhere to be seen.

 

He fell to his knees. The air gusted out of his lungs, and he clutched at himself, trembling, tears falling helplessly down his face. Rough, broken sobs tore their way up from his chest.

 

He stayed there for a while, crying into his own hands, until a soft voice came from behind him. “Desoto? Are you alright?!”

 

He turned to see Yokomon standing behind him, followed by a crowd of in-training digimon. He sucked in a breath and wiped at his eyes. “Patamon- Agumon-” he choked out, and shook his head. “I-I don't know what happened. They- I don't know where they are!”

 

Were they even alive?! Had the battle killed them both- or were they stuck out there in the wilderness somewhere, freezing and alone?

 

“Shh, it's alright,” Yokomon assured him. “Come inside, you and your friend need to recover.”

 

“Yokomon, I'm so sorry,” he sobbed out and she and the other villagers came forward to help him up and carry Megan's prone body out of the snow. “We- we put you in danger.”

 

“Well, it didn't end as badly as it might have,” she said sensibly. “Don't push yourself. Just come lie down for a while.”

 

“Our digimon-” he protested weakly, but she cut him off.

 

“We'll send out a search party,” she said. “You need to rest.”

 

He couldn't argue with her- he felt as weak as a newborn kitten. So he relaxed, allowing the digimon to help him back to the village.

 

He cast a final look back at the forest before he was taken inside of Yokomon's cabin. Smoke  still rose from the doll's broken corpse.

 

_Be ok_ , he wished fervently, thinking of their digimon.  _Both of you._

 

~

 

The guest room was actually pretty nice. They were led into a nice little red-clay house with large, glassless windows facing the streets, their shutters thrown wide to admit the cool evening breeze. There were two large beds, a low table, and a few potted lilies inside.

 

The guards brought them a tray of food. Most of them left after that, but the little grey rabbit from earlier stuck around.

 

“Can I talk to you for a bit, Gabumon?” he asked. “I want to see if there's anything else you can remember.”

 

“Sure,” Gabumon said, and the two of them sat on one of the beds, eating and talking. Impmon eventually gravitated over to them, looking grouchy but like he didn't want to be left out of the discussion.

 

Cameron left them to their devices and focused his attentions on the food. It was a modest setting of cheese, fish, and dried fruit, and he ate ravenously for the first time since breakfast yesterday at camp. It all tasted wonderful.

 

Eleena grabbed a wedge of cheese and sat in one of the open windows. Her back was stiff, her arms folded tight across her chest. She looked mad.

 

Cameron watched her sullenly as he finished his meal. If anyone should be mad, it was him. Ever since they landed in this desert, she'd done nothing but sulk and complain. He bet that she was plotting to stab him in the back as soon as she got the chance.

 

He knew he should probably leave her alone, but he was in a petty, snappish mood, and he wanted to get some kind of reaction from her. So he sauntered over and leaned on the widow frame opposite of her.

 

She slid back down to the floor immediately, watching him with wary eyes, like she expected him to start a fight. “What do you want?” she asked.

 

He shrugged. “What did you think about Leomon's story today? About the other Chosen Children?”

 

“I don't care,” she said. “It's in the past, it doesn't matter.”

 

Anger spiked in his chest, but he kept it under control. “I mean, I can hardly expect to see any kind of sensitive emotion from _you_. I shouldn't have asked.”

 

“No, you shouldn’t have,” she said sharply, looking out the window. “Leave me alone.”

 

“You don't deserve that crest, you know,” he said, pointing a finger accusingly at her chest. “After what you did to us, you don't deserve to call yourself a Chosen Child.”

 

Her eyes snapped onto him. “Yeah, I know,” she said, her voice low and dangerous. She angled herself towards him, bristling like she always did. “I don't want to be here, I don't care about any of this. Why do _you_ care? Just get out of my face!”

 

“If you don't care, you should just go,” Cameron spat. “I can't stand having you around.”

 

She glared at him flatly, then sucked in a breath. “Well, you may hate me, but I have one up on you.”

 

“Yeah? What's that?” he asked.

 

“I'm not a murderer,” she said, an ugly smile spreading across her face. “You are.”

 

A wave of rage and sickening guilt hit him. “Shut. your. mouth.” he snarled.

 

She outright _smirked_ at him. “Aww, did I strike a nerve? Sorry you can't claim the moral high-ground you wanted.”

 

“Stop it, I'm serious.” He advanced on her, his chest swelling with anger. “You can't joke around about that.”

 

“Or what, you'll beat my face in?” she asked. “I should have known you use violence to solve all your problems.”

 

“Look who's talking!” he shouted, throwing his arms up into the air.

 

Raising his voice got their digimon's attention.

 

“Cameron!” Gabumon sat up, looking outraged. “I'm surprised at you!”

 

“Did you hear what she said?” Cameron demanded. “She said-”

 

“I don't care!” Gabumon said. Crossing his arms over his chest. “You're _teammates_ , you're not supposed to be fighting!”

 

“No, you totally should,” Impmon said, grinning. “Then we can take _bets_.”

 

“My money's on the silver one,” Gazimon said.

 

Cameron _really_ wanted to argue the point. But if _Gabumon_ was getting on his case, he'd only feel bad later if he pushed it. So he sighed and rolled his neck, fully prepared to walk away.

 

Then Eleena whispered. “I wonder if you killed any babies?”

 

Afterward, Cameron wouldn't be able to remember why he moved; he didn't _think_ he meant to hurt her, just like… grab her by the collar and shout in her face, or maybe punch the wall by her head. Just- shake her up a little, make her feel his hurt, make her _understand_ what a douche she was being.

 

Hell, maybe he's just been _gesturing_.

 

But when he moved his arm, arcing it a little over his head, and her entire body _recoiled_ from him.

 

“ _DON'T HIT ME!”_ she shrieked, her eyes big and terrified. Her arms flew up and clamped around her head, like she was trying to protect herself from a blow.

 

Cameron froze. He stared at her, and saw that she was shaking- tense and trembling, like a frightened animal.

 

He lowered his hand. “I'm not- I'm not gonna _hit_ you,” he said, stunned.

 

She moved away sharply, vaulting a chair to curl up in the corner, her back to the wall. God, she was really _shaking_.

 

Across the room, he was vaguely aware of the digimon watching them, their eyes wide with shock and horror.

 

Against his better judgment, he went to her side. “Jesus, Eleena- what's wrong?”

 

“Don't touch me.” Her voice was wavering, but firm. Her face was hidden in her knees, and her shoulders were hunched inwards. “Don't _ever_ touch me.”

 

“...What _happened_ to you?” he said, quietly.

 

She made a small, hysterical noise that might have been a laugh. “What, my _life_?”

 

He opened his mouth to reply- not that he was sure what he should even _say_ \- but she cut him off.

 

“My stepfather hits me, ok?” she uncurled slightly, glowering at him. Her face was sullen now, less terrified- but her eyes kept darting to the doors and windows, like she was planning an escape. “Does that explain it to you?”

 

He rocked back. “I- _god, I'm-_ I'm _sorry_ ,” he whispered, shocked. “If I'd known, I never would have-”

 

“Never would have _what_?” She glared at him. “I still tried to _kill_ you. I would have _done_ it. Does it make a difference that I have a life straight out of some shitty after-school special?”

 

He didn't have an answer for that.

 

“Just leave me alone,” she mumbled. “This doesn't change anything, understand? And don't you _dare_ tell anyone about it.”

 

He bit his lip. On the one hand, it was probably best if he listened to her- but on the other hand… he got the feeling he'd made a terrible mistake. He _had_ to make up for it somehow.

 

But before he could make a decision about what to do, an ear-piercing scream echoed in from the street outside.

~

 

Megan woke up with a pounding headache and a raw throat.

 

She moaned softly and turned over, trying to find sleep again. Just a few more minutes of warm, gentle unconsciousness...

 

Something nagged at her, however. Something she was supposed to do- something bad had happened. She had to fix it, had to-

 

Her eyes snapped open.

 

“Agumon!” she struggled out of the blankets covering her body, sitting upright and staring wildly around her. “Agumon, oh god-”

 

She wasn't out in the snow anymore, she realized. She was in the middle of Yokomon's cabin, tucked in by the fire like she had been the first night they came there.

 

The screaming in her head had stopped. But that didn't relieve her; if Agumon wasn't Skullgreymon anymore, where _was_ he?

 

“Oh thank god, you're awake.” She looked up to see Desoto struggling out of his own nest of blankets to come rushing to her side. “Are you ok? Do you want some water, or food? I can get you-”

 

“Desoto, what happened?” She grabbed him by the collar and yanked him forwards. “Where's Agumon? Wh-where's Patamon?” Patamon was always glued to their partner's side. Their absence from the room was unmistakable.

 

Desoto's face fell. “They… I don't know. Angemon evolved to fight- fight what Agumon turned into, and they both… I _think_ they de-evolved. But they're out in the forest.”

 

Megan's stomach plummeted so quickly she thought she might puke. “Oh god. Oh god.”

 

“Don't freak out,” Desoto said firmly, gripping her shoulders. “Yokomon's people are out looking for them.”

 

“This is all my fault,” Megan whispered. “Agumon- I forced him to evolve! What was I _thinking_?!”

 

“...I don't know,” Desoto said, sitting back. He was watching her with a strange look on his face. “...what were you thinking?”

 

“I-I just wanted to protect everyone!” Megan said, gesturing with shaky hands. “You, the village- it's my responsibility,! I _need_ to protect everyone!”

 

“Well, you didn't protect Agumon, did you?”

 

Megan jerked back, shocked to hear the _anger_ in Desoto's voice.

 

He kept going, too, fixing her with a look of disappointment that hurt more than any glare could. “You put all of us in danger instead of running. And if you wanted to pull an insane stunt like that, we could have _at least_ led the doll off from the village so no one gets hurt.”

 

He rubbed at his arm, staring pensively down at the floor. “I talked to Yokomon. She'll help us find our digimon, and we can recover from the attack. But after that, she wants us to leave.” He took a deep breath. “And honestly, I can't blame her. We've brought this place nothing but trouble.”

 

Megan stared at him with her mouth hanging open. Desoto was literally the sweetest person she'd ever met- for him, this was the equivalent of a massive, screaming fit.

 

He caught her eyes, and his mouth twisted. “I- I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said-”

 

“No, you're right.” Megan reached out to smooth a hand through his hair- then she got to her feet. “I let my- my pride and fear get the best of me. I have to fix this.”

 

She ran to the door, grabbing her winter clothes from where someone had bundled them up on the floor and started hurriedly pulling them on.

 

“Wait- you can't go outside!” Desoto protested, scrambling to his feet. “It's blizzarding again, and you need to rest from- from everything that happened!”

 

“I don't care,” she said.

 

“Megan, you could _die_!” Desoto asked.

 

“Don't worry, you're included in my will,” she said flippantly..

 

“You have a _will_?!” Desoto yelled.

 

Ignoring him, Megan threw open the door. The wind attacked her immediately, sending a flurry of snow into her face.

 

She stared out into the darkness before her, and realized that she was literally facing her worst nightmare; walking out into a blizzard, unarmed and alone. She was so scared she could barely breathe.

 

But… Agumon was out there somewhere. And she had to find him. She had to make everything up to him.

 

Or she would freeze to death trying.

 

“Stay here,” she called to Desoto over her shoulder, then walked out into the storm.


	20. Episode 20- Reconciliation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- Discussions of past child abuse.

Eleena was… not ok.

 

She curled tighter into herself, wishing that she could just disappear. There were a lot of confusing emotions struggling with each other inside of her, but all the hurt and anger and fear were overwhelmed with pure, unadulterated embarrassment.

 

God, she'd made a _complete_ ass out of herself. Any small chance of ever intimidating Cameron again had flown out of the window. If he told the other Chosen Children about what had happened, they would _eat her alive._

 

She wasn't even entirely sure what had happened. One minute, they'd been arguing as usual, she'd felt fine- well, irritated, frustrated, and more than a little desperate, but as fine as she ever got- and then-

 

And then he'd _moved_ , and for a split second, it had _been_ her stepfather standing there, hauling back to hit her.

 

And she'd just… just _shattered_.

 

Her arms had gone up on instinct, and the noise that came out of her throat has been shocking, _frightening;_ upsetting to make and to hear.

 

“ _DON'T HIT ME!”_

 

She grimaced. God. If her life had a rewind-erase button, that would go first. She kind of wanted to kill Cameron again, not because she was  _mad_ anymore,  but  just  to erase the memory of that moment from him.

 

She didn't want any witnesses to her private shame and horror.

 

The scream from outside w as  a profound relief.  Cameron turned away, his too close, pitying face distracted from her, and she could breath again, for just a moment. 

 

“What the hell?” He asked, running to the window.

 

The screams multiplied, and were mingled with low, echoing booms. A few moments later, the door burst open and two guards came rushing in.

 

“The Glitched digimon escaped from it's prison,” the little grey rabbit gasped out. “The king- he requested your help.”

 

“Got it,” Cameron said, and raced out the past the guards, Gabumon following hot on his heels.

 

Impmon came up to her, looking nervous. “Um… A-are you- are we going to help them?” it asked.

 

She appreciated that it didn't ask if she was alright. She appreciated not having to lie to it.

 

“Yes,” she said tersely. She got to her feet, avoiding her digimon's eyes as she turned to the door.

 

As they ran onto the street outside, she saw digimon hurrying away from a tall plume of smoke emanating from a large, domed building.

 

“It woke up and went berserk,” the pink bird explained. “They aren't usually this violent… it was probably agitated from getting attacked earlier.”

 

“Yeah, rub it in, why don't you,” Cameron muttered under his breath.

 

“The last we saw, Andromon was stalling it,” the grey rabbit said. “If we hurry, we might be able to help him subdue it and get it back to-”

 

“It's too late for that.”

 

They all looked up to see King Leomon striding towards them. His face was grave, and all the fur on his hackles was standing up. “It absorbed Andromon.”

 

The guards gasped. “No,” the grey rabbit whispered, holding up its hands to its mouth.

 

“I called the rest of the guard off before they could get hurt,” Leomon explained. “It's heading this way. You, chosen Children… you are our last hope.”

 

And right there in front of them, the King knelt to the cobbled street, touching his forehead and one fist to the ground, his other fist held over his heart.

 

“Please,” he said, and his voice shook with emotion. “I beg you to help my city, and my people.”

 

Eleena stared at him. She hadn't known the King for a long time, but he had struck her as a man- a digimon, rather- full of pride and confidence. To see him _pleading_ to them like this, completely vulnerable… It was almost disturbing.

 

“Whoa, dude, no need to beg,” Cameron said hastily, looking as freaked out as Eleena felt. “Seriously, get up. We'll help you, it's no big deal.”

 

Leomon looked up, and his eyes burned so fiercely that Eleena had to look away. “I truly thank you. But I have one request- d on't fight it ,”  he said,  and turned to Eleena “You, girl- you have earned your crest. You and your partner have the power to  _heal_ glitched digimon. Please… show them mercy.”

 

A snarky answer was on the tip of her tongue- like she was going to waste time trying to heal this monster!- but then she saw the look on Leomon's face.

 

There was no trace of the piercing gaze he had turned on them during the trial. There was just a naked, pure look  of pleading- this was a proud creature, begging her not to hurt something he truly loved.

 

The twisting in her gut got worse. When she answered, she couldn't keep her voice from breaking. “I'll try,” she said, and clambered onto Beezlemon's back.

 

~

 

Botamon shivered, snuggling closer to Patamon's warm body. He was tucked under the rookie's wing, huddled up against their wing.

 

After the battle, when the two of them fell to the ground, de-evolved and weak as hatchlings, they had crawled under the low-hanging branches of a nearby pine tree for shelter from the falling snow. It was better than nothing, but they were rapidly losing heat.

 

“I'm sorry for attacking you,” Patamon said quietly.

 

“It's ok,” Botamon stammered out, trembling so hard that it was difficult to speak. “I'm glad you stopped me from hurting anyone else.”

 

Botamon could see lights in the distance; he thought the townsfolk might be searching for them. “You.. might be able to get their attention if you flew above the treeline,” he suggested.

 

Patamon shook their head firmly. “I'm not leaving you alone, you'll freeze.”

 

“I...” Botamon looked down. “… I don't think I deserve to have you protect me.”

 

“Don't say that,” Patamon said immediately. “What happened- that wasn't your fault at all.”

 

Botamon closed his eyes. He could still remember how it felt to be Skullgreymon- to be made of static and screaming and pure, poisonous hatred. “That evolution… I never want to be that way again, but it was a part of me. I can't deny that. What if it happens again?”

 

“Megan was the one who made you evolve,” Patamon pointed out, a hard edge to their voice that Botamon hadn't heard before. “It's her fault.”

 

“Well, I didn't stop her,” Botamon whispered. “...Do you think she hates me now?”

 

“What? No! How could she hate you?!” Patamon's wing curled tighter around him.

 

“I was a monster,” Botamon said, trying to hold back tears. “It hurt her too… she was screaming. What if she never wants to see me again?”

 

“Botamon, _no.”_ Patamon nuzzled him gently. “It was all just a mistake. Yes, that evolution may be a- a possibility for you, but… if you were a monster, you wouldn't feel guilty about it.”

 

“...You think so?” Botamon asked.

 

“I know it,” Patamon said firmly. “And Megan made a dumb mistake, but she would never abandon you. I bet she's out there looking for you right now.”

 

Botamon sighed. “I doubt it. You know how much she hates the cold.”

 

A sudden, distant yell broke their conversation. “AGUMON!”

 

Botamon's ears pricked up. He and Patamon exchanged a glance. “That sounded like- it couldn't be her, could it?”

 

“What did I tell you?” Patamon said smugly. “She loves you.”

 

“AGUMON!” The shout was closer now, and followed by the pounding of heavy boots through snow. “AGUMON, WHERE ARE YOU?! PATAMON!”

 

“We're over here!” Patamon called back.

 

The voice fell silent, then the footsteps got louder and more hurried. Finally, Megan came bursting out from between two pine-trees in a shower of snow and needles, looking around frantically.

 

“Down here!” Botamon called, his heart bursting with joy.

 

Her eyes locked onto the two of them huddled under the tree, and her whole face lit up. She crashed to her knees before them and flung her arms out.

 

Botamon leapt into her embrace, sobbing openly. “Megan! I thought I'd never see you again,” he wailed, nuzzling up against her chest.

 

“It's ok, it's ok, I'm here, shhh,” she whispered, stoking him gently. “Wow, you're so small like this. What are you now?”

 

He sniffed. “I'm Botamon. This is my baby form.”

 

“How did you even find us?” Patamon asked, crawling out from under the bush.

 

“True love,” Megan answered. “No, that's a lie. It turns out I can track you with my digivice. Why did Vega never tell us all this cool stuff you can do with them? There's an egg timer too!”

 

Botamon giggled. “Thank you, really. I thought we were going to freeze out here!”

 

She gave him a terribly fond look, and set him down in her lap. “Botamon,” she said, her voice suddenly grave. “I… I owe you an apology.”

 

“Oh, Megan-” he started, wanting to brush off her concerns, but she held up a hand to stop him.

 

“Just let me say this,” she said, and took a deep breath. “I- I wronged you, by forcing you to evolve like that. I didn't… I wasn't valuing you as my partner like I should have been. As a Chosen Child, it's my job to protect you… and I failed.”

 

She closed her eyes for a moment. “I don't expect you to accept my apology. But I'm offering it anyway, and I promise that I will never make you go through that again.”

 

Botamon let out a choked laugh. “Well- it's my job to protect you _too_ , Megan. And of _course_ I accept your apology, don't be stupid.”

 

She smiled, relieved, and hugged him again- but their embrace was cut short as a warm blue light began glowing forth from his body.

 

His heart pounded in delight and excitement as he evolved, all the way past champion and into his Ultimate form.

 

Metalgreymon stretched his arms out and roared, just to celebrate how amazing it felt. “Now, _that's_ more like it!” he crowed.

 

Megan and Patamon cheered him on from below. “You look amazing!” Megan called up at him.

 

“Now PLEASE tell me that we get to ride on your back to the village,” Patamon said. “My wings are about to freeze off.”

 

“Ooh, yes, it's still VERY cold,” Megan said, wrapping her arms tightly around herself. “I would not say no to that ride.”

 

Metalgreymon chuckled, and knelt down in the snow. “Ok, hop on!” he crowed, and for the first time since that morning, he felt  almost  completely happy.

 

~

 

Cameron sat astride Garurumon's back, his face grim as he stared down the Glitchmon. “Ok, buddy- we need to be ready to clean up after her if this doesn't work.”

 

He didn't like the idea of being sidelined during a fight like this. But King Leomon was right- if they had a chance to heal this thing, they should take it.

 

Garurumon nodded tightly. Then, after a moment, he asked in a quiet voice; “...Are you ok?”

 

“I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be fine?” Cameron snapped, watching as Eleena circled around the Glitchmon. “We should focus.”

 

Garurumon persisted, however. “What happened back at the room, though… I- I don't understand. Why would her, um 'stepfather'- why would he hurt her? You humans, your parents… aren't they supposed to protect you?”

 

Cameron's gaze snapped down. “Well...” He swallowed and rubbed awkwardly at the back of his neck- this wasn't something he'd foreseen having to explain to his digimon, especially not in a situation like this. “Yeah, they are. But sometimes, um- people aren't great at doing what they're supposed to do. And sometimes, that means… they hurt people, instead of helping them.”

 

_Like us,_ he thought with a chill up his spine.  _We were supposed to protect digimon. But we ended up killing them instead._

 

He shook his head fiercely. It wasn't the  _same_ . They'd been manipulated into doing that by Vega… no one had forced Eleena's stepfather to hurt her. 

 

But the sick, guilty feeling remained in the pit of his stomach _._ “I'm going to be honest with you, buddy, I feel awful,” he muttered to Garurumon. “I spent all this time doubting her, being mean to her, acting like she'd turn on us at any minute… was I just hurting her?”

 

“Well, I mean- you were justified,” Garurumon said, sensibly. “She _did_ try to kill us.”

 

“I guess,” Cameron said. “...That doesn't make me feel any better.”

 

They couldn't continue their conversation, as Beezlemon came into view of the Glitchmon, and they had to concentrate. But Cameron's brain was working hard, trying to reevaluate the situation.

 

Who _was_ Eleena? Was he wrong to have doubted her all this time? From what he'd seen he'd been quick to judge that she was making no effort to become change herself, and become a Chosen Child. She was cruel, selfish, she didn't care about anyone but herself-

 

-But she'd saved Megan's life back in the forest. And she'd helped him fight the Glitchmon back at the village, hadn't she?

 

And, most telling- she'd agreed to heal the glitchmon.

 

Would a cruel, selfish person do that?

 

He watched, conflicted, as Beezlemon strode towards the glitchmon. He stretched his hands out, and closed his eyes, concentrating.

 

For a moment, nothing happened. The monster, sensing Bezlemon's presence, opened it's many mouths, power charging up to blast him.

 

Cameron felt Garurumon tensing underneath him, ready to charge in.

 

But then a white, shimmering ripple surrounded Beezlemon, like a heat mirage. The ripple spread, reaching out towards the glitchmon.

 

The glitchmon didn't seem to like this at all. It began to writhe, shrieking in a multitude of voices that made Cameron want to cover his ears and curl up in the fetal position.

 

Its tentacles whipped out, reaching for Beezlemon, who was forced to leap aside. He was still holding his hands out, struggling to maintain the rippling flow of power that flowed from his fingertips.

 

Leomon jumped into the way, batting aside the glitchmon's tentacles. “Focus on the healing!” he called out. “I will distract it!”

 

“Let's go help him,” Cameron urged Garurumon, who nodded and raced forward with a growl.

 

Tangling with the glitchmon up close was even scarier than facing it at a distance; Cameron yelped in terror and laid himself low along Garurumon's neck as they just barely dodged a blast of energy from one of its gaping, toothy maws.

 

They managed to keep it away from Beezlemon for a few minutes, and its writhing and shrieking grew more frantic as he continued his healing. It looked like it was shrinking, and Cameron's heart leapt with hope; maybe they could actually do this!

 

But  just then, things took a turn for the worst . The glitchmon surged past them ,  knocking Garurumon to his side with a yelp. Cameron barely managed to keep his seat, his fingers clinging desperately (and probably painfully) to his digimon's mane.

 

They scrambled back upright just in time to see a tendril catch Eleena her around the ankle and yank her sharply into the air. She yowled like an angry cat as she was flipped upside down and pulled directly over one of its mouths.

 

Cameron moved on instinct; he grabbed two clumps of Garurumon's mane and tugged at them like reins, steering him towards Eleena. Garurumon caught on quickly, and leapt forward.

 

His jaws snapped shut on the tendril, severing it in two. Eleena dropped to the cobbles and landed with an unpleasant crunch.

 

Cameron scrambled down Garurumon's back to go check on her. He knelt on the stones at her side and held out his hand. “Are you ok?” he demanded.

 

She stared at him, holding her arm. “...Why did you do that?” she asked, ignoring the pain she must be feeling.

 

He opened his mouth to reply- then shut it again.

 

In truth, he hadn't even thought before he moved; it had been his natural instinct to try and save her. There hadn't been any deeper meaning behind it, he would have done it for anyone.

 

But… but now that he  _was_ thinking… if he was given the choice again, he would  do exactly the same thing.

 

Because… Well, honestly, because he had no reason not to.

 

He closed his eyes, ashamed of himself.  _I've been an idiot; I let my pride get the better of me._

 

“Because I was wrong about you, ok?” he said, looking her in the eyes. “I was mad at you, and- well, I was _scared_ of you, scared you'd hurt my friends… and I didn't let myself see that you'd changed.”

 

He sat down next to her. “I'm sorry. You  _are_ one of us, I should have realized that earlier. Do you… think we could start over?” He pushed his hand towards her again.

 

Before she could react, his digivice started to glow blue. He stared down at it for a moment, then turned, and saw the same blue glow engulf Garurumon as he began to evolve into his ultimate form.

 

A huge grin split Cameron's face. “Aw HELL yeah!” he crowed, standing up and pumping his fists in the air.

 

The glow faded, to reveal that Garurumon had gotten a LOT bigger, and was now standing on his hind legs. He was wearing a sick leather bandolier, spiked knuckledusters, and- a little incongruously- tattered blue jeans.

 

Cameron held up his digivice.  _Weregarurumon_ , the screen read.  _Level- Ultimate. Type-Vaccine._

 

Weregarurumon threw his head back and howled, a joyfull, triumphant sound. Then, he turned to his partner. “Cameron, help me! We can help heal the glitchmon now!”

 

“Right!” Cameron said eagerly- then stopped. “Um, what do I do?”

 

“It's just like when they evolve,” Eleena said. He suddenly realized she was standing beside him, still clutching her arm like it pained her, but looking determined. “Concentrate. Channel your feelings towards him.”

 

Cameron took in a deep breath, then nodded. He closed his eyes, trying to focus on helping his Digimon.

 

A sound like cooling metal filed his ears, and the glitchmon's screams  grew louder- then, slowly, began to quiet down.  He opened his eyes to see that it was shrinking rapidly now as Beezlemon and Weregarurumon  bore down on it, standing side by side as that same rippling energy flowed from them.

 

It shrink and shrunk, growing quieter but squirming more and more energetically- until suddenly, there was a bright flash of light, and the glitchy blob burst open.

 

Dozens of tiny, roundish, colorful digimon were scattered across the street like confetti. After a minute of laying on the ground, dazed, they began to pick themselves up.

 

There was a brief, confused muttering, and then shouts of delight as they started calling back and forth to each other, bouncing across the cobbles and joyfully piling into little groups, friends and family reunited as separate entities once again.

 

It got Cameron all choked up. He wiped at his eyes with the back of his hand, then started grinning as  their partners de-evolved and came to join the ir humans.

 

Gabumon ran up to hug him, and Cameron embraced him back fiercely. “That was  _awesome_ ,” he whispered  into his digimon's ear.

 

“It was all thanks to you,” Gabumon said sheepishly, nuzzling his face into Cameron's shoulder.

 

Impmon and Eleena weren't being so openly affectionate, but they were standing very close together, and he caught them exchanging smiles.

 

He also saw Leomon wading out into the crowd of tiny digimon, greeting them and talking to them all like they were old friends- and he suddenly realized that they must have been digimon that lived here once.

 

_All those glitchmon we destroyed… they all had friends and family_ , he thought,  the sick feeling returning to his stomach .  _They're all people, just like us._

 

Leomon came to a halt, and suddenly knelt down. He picked up a small, shiny-grey digimon that looked like an oversized computer mouse, and the look on his face turned very fond. “Well well, it's been a long time since I've seen you in this form, my dear.”

 

“This is humiliating,” the digimon grumbled, and Cameron's eyes widened as he realized that it was speaking with Andromon's voice- well, a little higher pitched, but still recognizable.

 

“Don't say that,” Leomon chided him teasingly. “You fought quite bravely.” He gave the little digimon a delicate, affectionate lick.

 

Then he stood up and turned to the humans. “I thank you, Chosen Children. Not only have you protected my city, you have brought back many digimon that I had thought were lost to us. Their families will be delighted to hear from them again.

 

“However… that doesn't make up for the innocent digimon you have killed before.” Lemon cradled the mini-Andromon in his arms. “Even if you didn't know better- which I am inclined to believe, since your healing powers were fueled by your pure intentions- I still wish for you to atone for actions.”

 

Cameron bowed his head. “I- I'm really sorry. I'd be happy to take whatever punishment you think is fair.”

 

“Of course,” Gabumon quietly assented.

 

“Uh- yeah, same,” Eleena said. Impmon nodded, looking nervous.

 

Leomon regarded them seriously. “...Vega and The Glitch are the  greatest threat to our world. If you can remove those threats, I will consider your  debts- and those of the other Chosen Children- to be paid in full.”

 

Cameron swallowed. “We can- well, we can  _try_ and do that,  certainly.”

 

“That is all we ask,” Andromon said simply.

 

“We will provide you with food and medical care before you set out,” Leomon said. “Please feel free to stay here as long as you need to recover” And with a small bow, he turned from them and rejoined what was turning into an impromptu party on the streets as more and more digimon gathered, old friends reuniting and celebrating their success.

 

Cameron watched the proceedings with a smile, but was jolted out of his thoughts as something shoved him. He whirled around to see Eleena giving him a weird look.

 

“Hey,” she said quietly. “...I owe you one.”

 

He raised his eyebrows in surprise. “...Just don't try and kill us in our sleep, ok?”

 

She scowled. “I thought you said-”

 

He put up his hands. “A joke! I was joking. Seriously, we're good.”

 

“You have a shitty sense of humor,” she said flatly, but a hint of a smile tugged at her lips.

 

“Yeah, I know,” he replied, feeling satisfied.


	21. Episode 21- Hope

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! I've been dealing with some health issues and there's been a lot of stress in my life lately. XP We now return to your regularly scheduled updates!

“Ughhhh, it's no use, we're NEVER going to find them,” Andrew groaned, dragging his feet through the scrub. “This world is just- stupid and too big!”

 

“Well, it's nice to know that the Glitch didn't mess with your personality any,” Lopmon said. “You're just as whiny as ever.”

 

Andrew scowled at him, but it was like, a friendly scowl. “And it definitely didn't make you any less sassy.”

 

“Nothing could mess with my sass,” Lopmon said flippantly.

 

Their relationship had improved, somewhat, ever since their escape from the Glitch's world. They were still awkward, but it felt like a barrier had been dropped. That strange, heavy tension that had hung between them, keeping them from really getting closer- all of a sudden it had just vanished.

 

Lopmon seemed a little happier and more confident. As for Andrew- it was like a weight had been lifted off his chest. It wasn't like his problems were _gone_ , but somehow… sharing them made them easier to deal with.

 

It was a relief. He hoped it was a relief for Lopmon, as well.

 

Of course, as soon as they escaped the Glitch, they'd still had to figure out where the hell they _were_ , and how to get back to Megan and the others. After much heated discussion, they had finally just picked a random direction (Lopmon insisted it was north, but Andrew was sure he was bluffing,) and started walking.

 

Several days had passed since then. Eventually, the flower fields had given way to tough, dry scrublands, full of cacti and wirey shrubs. This land had it's own strange, bleak beauty, the wide, flat, empty spaces carving a wide bowl for the sky above them. It made Andrew, who had grown up surrounded by trees and houses everywhere he went, get a little agoraphobic.

 

Lopmon knew how to find food for them, even in this sparse landscape. Roots, edible flowers, insects, (which had initially horrified Andrew, but it turned out that locusts were delicious, especially toasted.) and fruit that more often than not had to have prickles or poison spurs removed before eating them. Andrew was impressed by his survival skills.

 

“I grew up in the wild,” He'd said once, when Andrew mentioned how remarkable it was that he could find a full meal for them out of practically nothing. “Out here, if you can't find your own food, you don't eat.”

 

When Andrew excitedly pointed out that he'd recovered another memory, Lopmon had just scoffed. “Just barely. I don't even remember where it was I _lived_. It's like there's this great big empty space crowding out all my other memories, pushing them to the sides, and I can't really see around it.”

 

He'd started looking morose after that, and Andrew had made some dumb joke to distract him. So, things weren't perfect- their problems were still their problems. But at least Lopmon was willing to talk about them now.

 

Presently, Lopmon turned to him and asked, out of nowhere, “What's your world like?”

 

Andrew blinked at him, startled; he'd never really given any interest in Andrew's life before. “Well. Um… It's a lot like this one, only… only there are more cities, and less nature. Well, where I lived, anyway. Um. No digimon, just humans. And animals- they're kind of like you guys, but not as smart. They can't usually talk.”

 

“Huh.” Lopmon seemed to consider that for a moment. “You've talked about your parents before. What are they like?”

 

“Why are you so curious about my home life all of a sudden?” Andrew asked in an amused tone.

 

Lopmon shrugged. “I guess… I just realized I don't know much about you. We haven't really talked as much as we should probably have since we met.”

 

“Fair.” Andrew looked up at the early afternoon sky, thinking. “Well, looks wise, I take after my mom, and Megan takes after our dad. But otherwise they're not much like us; they're both very serious, quiet people.”

 

“I don't think anyone would ever describe Megan as 'quiet,” Lompon said dryly. “And you're just generally ridiculous.”

 

“I can hardly argue,” Andrew said, grinning at him. “We lived in a normal house together, we had a cat- a type of animal… Jeeze, I wonder how they're doing.”

 

He felt a sudden pang of longing as he realized it had been over a month since the last time he'd seen his parents. It wasn't the first time he'd wanted to go home, but all at once it seemed to come crashing into him, how much he wanted to be back in his own house, his own room, to pet Nooks again, and hug his parents.

 

He pushed the feeling down- if he let himself start thinking like that, he'd just get depressed. “What about you?” he asked. “Do digimon have parents?”

 

“Well, sort of?” Lopmon said. “New digimon eggs usually just appear when there's an excess of energy is hanging around. But when two or more digimon get together and have a data merge, they can create a new egg.”

 

Andrew blinked. “...Did you just explain how digimon sex works?”

 

Lopmon cocked his head to one side, and Andrew realized he really, REALLY did not want to have this conversation right now. “Anyway,” he said hurriedly, “what about you? Did you just show up, or did you have digimon who looked after you?”

 

Lopmon shook his head sadly. “I still don't remember. I still don't have most of my memories- like, technical stuff, how to walk and talk, that's there, but what actually _happened_ in my life- it's just… not there. And it hurts my head to try and think about it.”

 

“Not anything?” Andrew asked, dismayed. “Are you still getting memories in your dreams?”

 

“...Nothing concrete,” Lopmon said. “All I can remember is sitting in those flower-fields, and someone talking to me. I can't remember what they look like, all I can really recall is that they told me 'don't shut me out'.”

 

He started playing absently with his ears, which Andrew had come to realize was something he did to self-sooth when he was thinking or anxious. “It must have been someone I was close to. So maybe someone _was_ looking after me back then.”

 

Andrew hummed. “There MUST be some way to get your memories back. I've heard before that humans don't actually ever _lose_ memories, they just get, like, buried. So if we could find some kind of trigger, I bet they'd all come flooding back.”

 

“That's if digimon brains even work like human brains,” Lopmon said dully. “For all we know, Vega might have found a way to delete them permanently.”

 

He looked so despondant that Andrew stopped walking and leaned down to gently pat his head. “Don't think like that,” he said. “You'll get them back. I know you will.”

 

Lopmon gave him a wry grin. “Oh, _you're_ confident.”

 

“Yup!” Andrew puffed out his chest. “I decided to take a page out of my sister's book and just not let anything stop me anymore.”

 

“Heavens help us all,” Lopmon said, and he looked cheered when Andrew laughed.

 

Suddenly, his eyes went wide, and he pointed off to the horizon. “Hey- what's that?”

 

Andrew jumped and turned, his heartbeat ticking faster. Was it one of Vega's dolls? Or a glitchmon?

 

All he could see was a small group of figures, hazy with distance and heat. He squinted hard, reaching up to shade his eyes, and could pick up that about half of them were much shorter than the others… and that all of them were waving frantically.

 

He stood up straight, his mouth falling open in shock. He could hear faint yelling, and the group began to move faster, running towards them- and soon he could pick out four humans, two tall, one short, one _very_ short, accompanied by three digimon running alongside them, and one flying above their heads.

 

He gasped. “Oh my god- it can't be!”

 

“I think it is!” Lopmon said, hopping up and down excitedly. “Come on!”

 

They both took off running, and Andrew whooped in excitement as his friends came racing over the rise of the land to meet him, Megan leading the pack.

 

“ANDREW!” she yelled, stretching her arms out.

 

He was too choked up to even reply.

 

It was like a scene out of a really corny movie; time seemed to move in slow motion as they sprinted towards each other, closing the gap until she could leap into his arms, their bodies crashing together.

 

The only thing that ruined the moment was when their faces collided hard, crushing Andrew's nose and clipping Megan's teeth into his cheek.

 

They pulled back, clutching at their faces. “Ow, God!” Andrew groaned, rubbing his nose, which thankfully didn't feel broken. “I'm really happy but oww!”

 

Megan laughed helplessly. “Oh my god, you're here, you're actually here!” She grabbed him again, burying her face into his chest and squealing.

 

He started laughing as the rest of the group caught up to them. He nuzzled his face into her hair, breathing deeply, stroking her back. “God, I missed you,” he whispered.

 

“I missed you too,” she said, her voice choked with emotion. Finally, she let him go, holding him at arms length and beaming up at him. “I think you've shrunk since I last saw you.”

 

“Well screw you too,” Andrew said with a grin.

 

All of a sudden, Cameron pushed his way between them. “Ok, ok, don't hog him all to yourself!” he said, and grabbed Andrew by the waist.

 

Andrew let out a terrified, exhilerated yelp as Cameron lifted him up and spun him around. Then he crushed him up against his chest, knocking the wind out of Andrew's lungs.

 

“I was so _worried_ about you!” Cameron said, pulling back and reaching up to cup Andrew's cheek in one hand. “How are you? Are you ok?!”

 

“J-just a little dizzy, Andre gasped out, his face beet red. Of all the greetings he might have expected from Cameron, he hadn't been anticipating something so energetic!

 

_God, he's beautiful_ , Andrew thought, staring up into Cameron's  _ridiculously_ blue eyes.  _And he smells so good up close..._

 

Megan made a low, strangled noise of delight, and Andrew jerked back, suddenly realizing that everyone was staring at them.

 

He turned his head to the side, burning with mortification. “Um- I'm glad you're alright,” he said awkwardly.

 

“Yeah, man,” Cameron replied, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. “Me too. I'm glad _you're_ alright, I mean.”

 

Megan was giving him the kind of shit-eating grin that he _knew_ meant she was going to be grilling him about this later. He vowed to murder her as soon as he got her away from any witnesses.

 

Desperate to smooth over his own embarrassment, he turned to Desoto and held out his arms. “Hey, man, long time no see!”

 

Desoto folded easily into the hug with a little hum of contentment. “We missed you _so_ much. Where did you end up after the teleporter whacked out?”

 

“We were in these amazing flower fields,” Andrew said as he stepped back. “It was beautiful, I wish you guys could have seen it.”

 

“That's cool,” Megan said. “Me and De nearly died on a frozen mountain. Multiple times.”

 

“Me and Eleena almost died in the desert!” Cameron said excitedly.

 

“You guys are trying to make me feel inadequate, aren't you?” said Andrew, folding his arms.

 

“Yup!” Megan said immediately, and Desoto stifled a giggle behind his hand.

 

“Well, we fought the Glitch,” Andrew said defensively.

 

“How'd that go?” Megan asked.

 

Andrew shrugged. “I think it cured my depression.”

 

“Neato,” she said, nodding in approval.

 

“Oh hey, did you get your crest yet?” Cameron asked.

 

Andrew frowned. “My what now?”

 

Cameron dug into his pocket and pulled out his digivice. “King Leomon- He's a cool dude, I'll tell you how we met him later- he showed us what these keychain things are.” He shook his digivice, jangling a little blue tag with a little squiggly interlocking circle on it.

 

Andrew fished his own device out, and sure enough, he had a tag too- his was pink, with a shape almost like a rose on it. “Oh, hey, would you look at that! What are they?”

 

“They represent our core values,” Megan said. “As Chosen Children, we achieve them when we reach a higher point of harmony and understanding with our digimon, or some junk like that. Mine's responsibility,” she said proudly.

 

“Mine's friendship,” Cameron said, smiling down at it fondly.

 

“I haven't earned mine yet,” Desoto said ruefully. Then, when he noticed Patamon giving him a baleful look, he hastily added, “But I'm sure we will soon!”

 

“Wait, Eleena was the first one of us to get one, wasn't she?” Andrew looked over at Eleena, who had been standing off to one side and ignoring him this whole time. “What's yours?”

 

“None of your business, shortie,” she snapped.

 

Cameron smirked, and elbowed her in the ribs. “She's just embarrassed because she got _loooove_.”

 

“Shut up!” she growled, smacking him on the arm.

 

Andrew winced back, expecting a fight. But, to his astonishment, Cameron just laughed, and she actually _smiled_ at him.

 

Were they… _teasing_ each other? The last he'd seen, they'd been at each other's throats. Something drastic must have happened to make them this friendly with each other.

 

“Here, show me yours,” Cameron said, taking Andrew's hand and drawing it closer to his face. “King Leomon taught me what all the different crests are, so I should be able to tell… yup, you got Kindness!”

 

Andrew blinked. “Oh. That's kind of… surprising.”

 

He caught Lopmon smiling at him out of the corner of his eye. He looked away, blushing, but couldn't hide a small smile of his own.

 

“Well, look at us!” Megan said, putting her hands on her hips. “The Chosen Children are back together, we've all leveled up- nothing's gonna stand in our way now!

 

“Why does that sound like famous last words?” Andrew asked dryly, but he couldn't make himself feel as cynical as he sounded. At that moment, he earnestly believed in Megan's words- now that the five of them were back together, it really did feel like they could do anything.

 

And then the ground started to shake.

 

There was a sound like distant thunder, and he grabbed onto Cameron for support before the heaving scrubland could pitch him straight onto his ass. Similarly, Lopmon clung to his leg.

 

Something flickered into view above their heads- and Andrew's heart sank as he realized that it was Vega, his icon fading in and spinning slowly to a stop.

 

“ _Well, well, what have we here?_ ” Vega's voice boomed out around them, making everyone wince. “ _I thought that it would be best to divide and conquer, but it's actually much more convenient to have you all gathered in one place like this.”_

 

“Vega!” Andrew was a little surprised to see Desoto take point and start shouting up at the hovering spectre “We're wise to your tricks! You can't fool us any longer.”  


“ _And that's exactly why I'm not playing any more tricks, child,_ ” Vega said briskly. _“I intend to win with brute force.”_

 

All at once, a dozen of his (and now Andrew knew they _were_ his _,)_ dolls appeared out of thin air, encircling them. They were tall, brutal things, each with a single red visor like an eye on their heads and long, clawed arms.

 

“Well shit,” Cameron muttered, his hand tightening protectively on Andrew's shoulder.

 

Andrew swallowed hard. _And this is why I never let myself be optimistic,_ he thought bitterly.

 

~

 

Desoto's eyes flickered open, and he frowned in confusion. What had just happened? Where _was_ he _?_

 

He was in a small, rounded white space. Above him was a low, domed white ceiling, and below him was a cushion just long enough for his body to stretch out on.

 

When he sat up, his head knocked into the ceiling. He moaned in pain and reached up to rub his forehead- and all at once, the memories came flooding back.

 

They had _finally_ found each other again. After meeting up with Cameron and Eleena in the lowlands some days ago, they had found Andrew and Lopmon in the scrub wastes. They'd all been back together, and it had been great.

 

And then Vega had appeared.

 

His dolls had surrounded them, and they'd been helpless to fight back. Their digimon hadn't even had the chance to evolve before they had been snatched up by those terrible clawed hands.

 

Desoto had struggled as he was lifted off the ground by a doll, yelling for Patamon, terrified of being separated from his partner, but a hatch had opened up in the doll's chassis and he'd been unceremoniously stuffed inside.

 

He'd blacked out for a while, so he had no idea where they were, but from the way his prison rocked slowly from side-to-side, and the faint whining of gears around him, he thought that the doll was still in motion.

 

He got the terrible feeling that they were being taken straight to the Glitch. Cameron had told them what Vega had done to the previous Chosen Children, and he knew that the same fate waited for them- turned into energy and used to fuel the barrier around the Glitch.

 

_We're going to be used as fencing_ , he thought with hysterical humor.  _Oh god. I don't want to be trapped here; I'll never get to go home! I'll never get to see my family again!_

 

He gritted his teeth. There  _had_ to be something he could do; he wasn't content to lie down and let  this happen to him, to his friends- to his  _partner_ . 

 

He started struggling, trying to sit up in the crampt space, and he noticed something digging into his hip, He rolled to the side and reached around to find that his bag was still with him. He drew in a sharp breath- of course, the laptop!

 

He pulled it out and curled himself into a position where he could see the screen and reach the keys. It hurt his back, but he could put up with a little discomfort for the sake of _science_.

 

As it booted up, he wracked his brains for what exactly to do. He wasn't going to try and make anyone evolved, not after Skullgreymon. Even if he could morally bear that, (which he _couldn't_ , not in a million years,) that incident had firmly proved that there was no way to control corrupted digimon.

 

Could he get himself out of the doll? Maybe he could sneak away unnoticed and get help from somewhere.

 

He typed in the code to teleport himself, and, taking a deep breath, pressed enter. There was a familiar, staticky _blip_ \- and suddenly he was sitting in the middle of a wide, grassy field. He looked up, and his heart skipped a beat in terror as he saw the dolls towering over him.

 

For a moment, he was sure they would see him sitting there, and he'd be snatched up and stashed away again, his laptop disposed of, all hope gone.

 

But they didn't even seem to notice him; they just keep walking, their massive, hooflike feet moving right over his head as they continued walking down through the field. Vega was floating above them, his icon spinning gently.

 

Desoto looked further down the field, and saw a hill in the distance. On the very top there was a tall spire, some kind of big generator. And arcing out from it was a shimmery field, like a heat-wave in the sun.

 

And beyond that barrier, something was stirring in the distance, something shifting and growing like a stormcloud.

 

_That's gotta be the barrier, and the Glitch,_ Desoto realized, swallowing.  _Can I- can I just- get over there?_ He crouched down into the long grass and set up his laptop, repeating the teleport command.

 

In an instant, he was  _there_ , crouched beside the generator. It emitted a low, steady hum, and the barrier crackled around it,  it's energy  sending goosebumps up and down Desoto's arms. 

 

He glanced off at Vega and the approaching dolls; they were far enough away that (hopefully) they wouldn't be able to see him fooling around over here. So he set the laptop down, stood up, and walked over to inspect the generator.

It was about three stories tall and covered in shiny metal plating. All up one side was a row of flashing lights in different colors. He reached out and pressed a hand to the smooth, almost glasslike metal- then jumped back with a yell.

 

He'd _felt_ something. Something strong.

 

He touched it again, and the feeling was still there; a feeling of  _presence_ . He knew immediately who it  must be ; the previous Chosen children. 

 

They were still in there! They were alive!

 

But how to get them  _out_ ? They could probably spend years testing the barrier and trying to find a way to restore them… 

 

… or they could just bust this thing and see what would happen.

 

It was risky. Desoto didn't like the possibility that it might hurt them- and what would the Glitch do when the barrier came  down ? 

 

But with Vega breathing down their necks, he didn't see any other option. This could be their only chance to free the Chosen Children and defeat both Vega and the Glitch for good.

 

He pressed his hand to the barrier one more time. “I'm gonna get you guys out of there,” he said firmly, and he swore he could feel a flickering against his consciousness in response.

 

But he couldn't do it on his own. He plopped back down onto the grass, and opened the laptop one more time. Sucking in a breath, he re-typed the teleport command, changing the parameters slightly.

 

“I really hope Vega is dumb enough for this to work,” Desoto muttered to himself, and pressed enter.

~

 

Patamon blinked slowly, confused. Why were they lying in a patch of flowers?

 

“Hey, buddy!”  


They looked up to see Desoto standing over them, grinning a little hysterically. Then they looked beyond him, and saw a horde of Vega's dolls marching down the valley towards them.

 

“De?” They struggled to their feet, ruffling their wings back into order. “What happened? Where are we?”

 

“Umm, so, long story short- we all got captured by Vega's dolls, but I got you out! And now we need to smash up this generator real quick and free the old Chosen Children before Vega gets here.”

 

Patamon blinked at him. “...Ok, sure. But, De- how are we gonna do that? I still can't.- you know, evolve.” They shuffled their feet awkwardly, a familiar sense of guilt settling heavily into their stomach.

 

Once again, their human was in trouble, and they were _useless_. If only they could be more like Agumon, or any of the other Chosen digimon… even Impmon was a better partner than them.

 

“I tried to have bring the others here, but I can't use the teleport command on them,” Desoto said, gesturing to the laptop in the bag hanging at his hip. “Just you- because we're connected, I suppose. I… I hate to ask this, but… do you think you could evolve?”

 

Patamon shook their head sadly. “I- I just _can't_ , De, I don't know why. Unless… Maybe you could use that?” he pointed to the laptop.

 

Desoto sighed heavily. “I _really_ don't want to. Maybe as a last resort, but, like- can you tell anything about this generator?” he gestured up at the massive metal spire they were standing by. “Like, does it have a weak-point, or an off switch, or anything?”

 

“I… I have no idea,” Patamon said. “I've never seen anything like it.” Seeing Desoto's face fall, they hurriedly continued, “But I can take a look!”

 

They walked up to the machine, sniffing at it curiously. They reached up one paw to touch the shiny metal, and they-

 

_-They-_

 

_They were on a mountain, and the Glitch was brewing in the distance. It was so, so much bigger, so much WORSE than it should have ever been allowed to become._

 

_But the Glitch wasn't their immediate concern. Right here, right now, Vega's dolls were bearing down on them by the dozen- they were surrounded and utterly outnumbered._

 

_The others were crouched behind them. Gabumon and Agumon were trying to comfort Lopmon, who was curled in on himself and sobbing inconsolably as his friends stared up at the dolls in horror._

 

_Patamon didn't know why they had stepped out in front. There was nothing they could do to protect the others; the Chosen Children had fallen, and with them, the digital world's last hope was gone._

 

_But Patamon stood up anyway, defiant. He refused to let Vega hurt anyone else!_

 

“ _Even if you could fight me, why?” Vega asked, his cold, mechanical voice mocking them. “I'm doing this for the greater good.”_

 

“ _You've never cared about that!” Patamon yelled. “you're selfish! Selfish and petty!”_

 

“ _I'm tired of this,” Vega said flatly. “Take them, my dolls! They will be useful to me in the future.”_

 

_The dolls began to move, their hands stretching out, reaching down for the trembling, helpless rookie digimon._

 

“ _Patamon, get back!” Gabumon yelled. “It's not worth it!”_

 

“ _I can't accept that!” Patamon's wings flared open, and they leapt into the air, with a last, desperate hope to protect their friends._

 

_Warmth blossomed through them, and their shock was swept away as- for the first time in years- they began to evolve._

 

_They coalesced into the brightest, hottest point of their own soul, then blossomed forth, and the sudden power rushing through their body left him breathless and exhilarated._

 

_He was now almost as large as one of Vega's dolls, with six massive, billowing white wings. His hair spilled down his shoulders, blowing back in the wind. He twirled the strong golden staff that he found in his hands, testing it's weight and feeling the holy energy pulsing through it._

 

_He allowed the rushing white-hot fury to drive him forward. “You will not terrorize this world any longer,” he cried, holding out his staff. “HAND OF FATE!_

 

_He-_

 

Patamon stumbled back with a yelp, falling on their rump.

 

Desoto rushed forward and knelt down beside them. “What's wrong?” he asked frantically.

 

“I- I remembered something!” Patamon said. “I remembered…. I just remembered the worst day of my life.”

 

“Oh.” Desoto sat down. “Oh, Patamon.”

 

“I-” Patamon squeezed their eyes shut, trying to force back the tears. “… I knew the other digimon- before Vega, before any of this. Gabumon, Agumon, Lopmon… we were friends. And we- we were friends of the Chosen Children's digimon. So after Vega used them to seal away the Glitch, he- he turned on _us_.”

 

Desoto rubbed his head gently. “You don't have to talk about it, if it's too-”

 

“No, it's _important_ ,” Patamon insisted. They swallowed hard, and continued, their voice shaking. “He hunted us down, because he wanted to use us for an experiment- now I know that he wanted to put us in these digivices, and create Chosen Children of his own, to use you for the barrier.

 

“When he came for us… we were helpless.” Patamon closed their eyes, remembering the scene all too clearly. “We weren't like we are now; none of us had ever evolved beyond rookie. We didn't know how to fight. But I… somehow, I evolved. I became Angemon, and I- I fought Vega.”

 

“And… what happened then?” Desoto asked softly.

 

Patamon's eyes fluttered back open, and the tears began to fall. “...I lost.”

 

They could remember it now; they had only managed to destroy one or two dolls before Vega summoned dozens more to overpower them. They had been forced back into their weak, pathetic rookie body, and had heard their friends scream as Vega trapped them inside the digivices.

 

“I failed them,” they whispered. “I failed them, and now- now I can't evolve anymore, because I'm so scared- I'm just so scared it will happen again!”

 

“You evolved before, though!” Desoto said. “When Neodevimon attacked, and Skullgreymon-”

 

“That was only because you were in immediate danger,” Patamon sniffled out. “I can't do it until I feel that you're about to die, and by that point, it will be too late!”

 

They looked down. “It's no use… I couldn't protect my friends, and now we're all going to be trapped because I- I won't be able to protect you, and everything will go wrong, and it- I'm just a _failure!”_

 

A wave of despair crashed over him. This really was the end now, and he couldn't do anything to prevent it. What had been the point of everything up till now? All their friendships and how hard they'd fought- was it all really for nothing?

 

“Patamon.” Desoto reached down and with firm but gentle fingers, tilted his chin up- and Patamon was shocked to see that he was _smiling_. “Patamon, don't you even realize how amazing you are?”

 

“Don't- don't just say that to comfort me,” Patamon said, choking on a sob.

 

Desoto laughed gently, and picked them up with two hands around their belly, holding them up to look them in the eye. “I'm not. You knew you wouldn't be able to defeat Vega, but you fought him anyway. Why did you do that?”

 

“I- I just-” Patamon swallowed roughly. “Because I couldn't stand it. I couldn't _not_ fight for my friends. Even if there was no hope...”

 

Desoto leaned in, pressing their foreheads together. “And that's what makes you so incredible. Patamon, you evolved on your own, with no help from me or _anyone_ , just because you wanted to protect your friends. What did it feel like?”

 

“It felt like… like I could do anything,” Patamon whispered. He remembered the strength that flowed through him, the sudden sense of surety. “It felt like- like no matter what, there was no way I would lose.”

 

“And you were right,” Desoto said.

 

“But I lost!” Patamon protested. “I lost- and my friends-!”

 

“You were trapped,” Desoto said. “And then… we found you. _I_ found _you_. Don't you see? You didn't lose; everything that happened led to us being together. And I can't believe that happened without a reason.”

 

Patamon blinked up at him, shocked.

 

“I… I never believed in myself, before I met you,” Desoto said, and the quiet sadness in his voice broke Patamon's heart. “But now I do. I believe in _you_. And I believe in our friends; we've all struggled and suffered and fought so hard, and it wasn't for nothing. It brought us here, alive and still fighting. And I still have hope.”

 

Desoto held them up, and grinned widely. “Because as long as you're with me, I don't believe there's any fight we can't win!”

 

Looking into their partner's wide, shining blue eyes, and seeing the certainty there- suddenly, something inside of Patamon _changed_.

 

“Yeah,” they said, smiling even through the tears that kept flowing. “Yeah!”

 

And he began to evolve.

 

~

 

Desoto stumbled back, staring up in awe as Patamon began to evolve. They grew rapidly, a familiar set of six white wings bursting from their back.

 

_Well, Vega's definitely noticed us by now,_ Desoto thought in the back of his mind, but he was to delighted to care.

 

But just as Angemon began to emerge, another glow overtook him; a pulsing yellow light that swelled up and up, until it finally burst into a figure _much_ larger than Angemon.

 

Half of his wings folded over his body like armor, and his face was hidden by an ornate purple helmet. Shimmering golden ribbons trailed off of him, and a sword and shield of purple energy crackled to life in his hands.

 

Desoto pulled out his digivice and pointed it up; _MagnaAngemon_ , it read. _Level- Ultimate. Type- Vaccine._

 

“You did it!” he yelled, jumping up and down and flapping his arms excitedly. “You evolved into your ultimate form!”

 

“I didn't do it on my own,” a deep, warm voice said, as MangaAngemon knelt down before him. “Quickly, before Vega can stop us- I'm going to break the barrier. That should free the Original Chosen Children, but also the Glitch. We need to be prepared.”

 

“But- can we fight-” Desoto started, then laughed, shaking his head. “No, I trust you.”

 

“And there is one more thing you need to know,” MagnaAngemon said. “There is still much I don't remember, but I remembered this- Vega is the one who created the Glitch.”

 

Desoto's eyes widened. “What? Seriously?!”

 

“I know. It seems unlikely, but the two of them are connected in some way. The Glitch must be freed if we ever hope to defeat Vega's power.”

 

There was a roar of anger in the distance, and Desoto looked up to see the remaining dolls charging towards them.

 

Desoto swallowed. “I trust you,” he said again. “Go on, do it!”

 

MagnaAngemon stood up, and with one might swipe of his sword, the generator was sliced in two. Then he flung himself down, his body curling protectively around Desoto.

 

MagnaAngemon crouched over him, protecting him as three things happened in short succession.

 

First, the generator exploded.

 

Second, with a hellish chorus of screams, the Glitch broke loose from it's prison.

 

And third, with a burst of multicolored light- the original four digidestined were set free.


	22. Episode 22- Revenant

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now, finally, we meet the rest of the Chosen Children...

Junko opened her eyes.

 

She was kneeling on the ground, flowers crushed beneath her legs. She stared down at her hands, so overwhelmed with the feeling of _having hands and being able to see them_ that she couldn't think of anything else for a moment.

 

 _I'm out_ , she thought blankly. _How did I get out? Who-_

 

“Um, hello!”

 

She looked up to see a boy, eleven or twelve at the oldest, with light brown skin and black hair, looking down at her with a nervous smile. Behind him, an enormous, angelic digimon was kneeling on the ground, watching them carefully.

 

The boy gave her a little awkward wave. “Um- welcome back?”

 

“You broke the seal,” she said shakily, caught off guard by the sound of her voice. She had been dormant for so long, just _being_ was strange.

 

She levered herself to her feet, wobbling a little as she stood up. “How did you-”

 

“JUNKO!”

 

A green blur came out of nowhere and leapt at her, slamming into her chest. She caught it in her arms on instinct, a laugh startling out of her throat. “Wormmon! You're ok!”

 

Wormmon nuzzled against her, chirping happily. “Junko, I missed you! I mean, I know we were trapped together in static limbo for years, but… it's not the _same_.”

 

She felt tears prickling at her eyes as she held her digimon partner close. She breathed in his scent, feeling for a moment that everything was alright now.

 

But wait- was everyone else out? She looked around, and there was Ridley crouching on the ground, looking shell-shocked as Tentomon tried to talk to her. And there was Adam- Adora? No, it was Adam, no bow- hugging Gatomon in a stranglehold and sobbing his eyes out. And just a few feet away, laughing happily as she reunited with Bearmon-

 

“AIKO!” Junko half screamed, running to her little sister's side.

 

“Junko!” Aiko said, looking up with wide, delighted eyes, her pigtails flapping in the strong breeze that swept through the field. “Look, everyone's ok-oof!”

 

Junko crashed to her knees and grabbed hold of her sister, the tears starting to fall as she pressed her face into her hair. “Aiko,” she sobbed. “I was so _worried_.”

 

“Mmf-Stoppit, y'r crushing meee,” Aiko complained, struggling in her grip. “I'm _fine_.”

 

“Just- just give me a second,” Junko said, loosening her grip but not letting her sister go.

 

Their tender moment was interrupted by an awful roar, an all-too familiar sound. She looked up, clutching Aiko to her chest as she watched the Glitch burst free of it's cage and howl across the landscape like pyroclastic flow.

 

It was so much bigger, so much _worse_ than it should have ever been allowed to become.

 

She expected it to descend on them and grind them into dust- but it ignored them entirely, rushing up along the valley. She followed its progress with her eyes, looking for the target of it's malice- and gasped in horror at what she saw on the crest of the hill.

 

“Jaime,” she whispered, watching the red heart spinning above the horde of dolls.

 

“Not Jaime anymore,” Wormmon murmured. “Vega.”

 

She felt sick to hear that name.

 

“ _Who let you out of your cage?”_ Vega sneered, and the sound of his voice was like a punch to the gut.

 

“ _ **You thought you could imprison me forever, but you were WRONG!**_ ” the Glitch snarled. _**“Now you, and this entire miserable world will pay for what you've done to me!”**_ And it rushed forward, descending on Vega's dolls with a rageful howl.

 

The other Chosen Children clustered around her, staring up at the battle in horror. “What should we do?” Ridley asked, scared. “We can't fight them.”

 

“We need to run,” Adam said. “They're not paying attention to us at all, we can just-”

 

“NO!”

 

Junko whipped her head around to see the boy from earlier rush towards them. “My friends- they're trapped in those dolls!” he explained, his eyes wide with panic. “You have to help me rescue them!”

 

“Um, first of all, who _are_ you?” Junko asked. “And how did you break the seal?”

 

“I'm Desoto, I'm a Chosen Child- there are more of us, now,” he said. “M-my friends, they're Chosen too. Vega tricked us, we have to hurry!”

 

“How do we know we can trust you?” Junko asked warily.

 

He spread his arms out wide. “I just broke the seal, I let you out!”

 

“You let the _Glitch_ out, too!” Adam pointed out.

 

“There was no other way- I couldn't just leave you there!” He ran a hand through his hair, exasperated. “I don't have time for this. MagnaAngemon, come on-”

 

“Wait.” Gatomon stepped forward, frowning. “… _Patamon?_ Is that you?”

 

“Gatomon,” the angelic digimon said warmly. “It's good to see you again- all of you.”

 

“Wait- _that_ Patamon?” Adam asked, blinking up at them. “…Wow, you got big.”

 

“Oh, right, you _know_ them,” Desoto said.

 

Junko stared up at the massive Ultimate digimon for a moment, her mouth gaping in shock- then narrowed her eyes, thinking quickly. She could trust Patamon, she was sure- and if they were friends with this boy…

 

She stepped forward. “We'll help you get your friends back. Everyone, evolve, we have to-”

 

But before she could finish her sentence, there was a glow of light, and on the ground near them, several bodies appeared- four children, and four _very_ familiar digimon.

 

Desoto stared at them for a moment, then made a small sound of disgust. “Vega must have decided that they're worth protecting,” he muttered.

 

Junko watched with a heavy heart as he scrambled around, trying to wake them up. Then she looked back up to where the Glitch and Vega were clashing, great arcs of light and dark shooting up every time their powers collided, dolls scattering like ninepins in the wake of their battle.

 

She had never wanted to bring this kind of destruction to this world she loved. And she certainly hadn't wanted an entirely new generation of children to get caught up in it.

 

 _Oh Jaime,_ she thought. _What have you done?_

 

~

 

Andrew groaned. “Am I dead?” he asked.

 

“If you are, I think I am too,” came the muffled reply to his left. Lopmon's head popped up, and the digimon spat out a mouthful of grass. “Oh dear, that doesn't look good.”

 

Andrew sat up, and experienced a moment of Deja vu as he realized that they were back in the flower fields- but they were sitting near the ruins of some kind of large machine he'd never seen before.

 

And nearby, the Glitch was currently massacring Vega's dolls while Vega screamed in impotent rage.

 

“Oh no.” Andrew scrambled to his feet as his teammates woke up around him. “Guys, I think we're in trouble.”

 

“No shit, Sherlock!” Eleena shouted at him, her long hair whipping dramatically around her face.

 

“Um, should we maybe be running?” Cameron asked. “Because running seems like a really good idea right now.”

 

“Hey guys!” Andrew looked around to see Desoto running up to them. “I have some new friends for you to meet!”

 

Andrew very briefly glanced at the group of kids and digimon trailing behind Desoto, and a jolt went through him as he realized who they had to be- but he was quickly distracted by the _massive_ angelic figure standing over them.

 

“Holy shit!” he yelled. “Angemon, is that _you_?!”

 

“That's MagnaAngemon,” Desoto said, his voice brimming with pride.

 

“Dude, you got your crest!” Cameron yelled, grabbing him in a half-armed hug. “I knew you could do it!”

 

“I know, I know, it's awesome,” Desoto said, beaming. “Buuut, I was actually talking about how I freed the Chosen Children from the barrier.”

 

He stepped back and gestured to the group of kids, and this time, Andrew actually bothered to take a good look at them.

 

Standing in front of the others were two Asian girls, one of them tall and looking like an older teenager, with long black hair that flowed loosely down to her waist, holding a small green wormlike digimon at her hip.

 

The other girl, standing next to her with an arm wrapped around a blue bear digimon with a backwards baseball cap, couldn't be older than eight or nine, her hair in pigtails. She looked so similar to the older girl that Andrew wondered if they were sibling.

 

Standing in the back and talking to her digimon, a large red beetle with big green eyes, was a black girl in an oversized green sweater. When Andrew met her eyes, she looked away hastily, looking nervous.

 

The last one was another black kid who was regarding them with curiosity. He had short-cropped hair and was wearing a striking pink, floral shirt, and- Andrew's eyes widened in surprise and interest-a short blue skirt. His digimon was a white cat standing on it's hind legs like Lopmon did, wearing yellow gloves and a gold ring on it's tail.

 

There was a beat of silence as the two groups sized each other up. But before any of the humans could speak, Gabumon gasped loudly.

 

“Bearmon?!” he said, blinking in shock.

 

“Gabumon!” the bear digimon left the little girl's side and bolted towards Gabumon. The two of them met in between the two groups, hugging fiercely. “I never thought I'd see you again!”

 

“I missed you so much,” Gabumon said happily. “I can't believe I forgot about you!

 

Agumon stepped forward, following Gabumon. “Long time no see, Bearmon!” he said.

 

“Agumon!” Bearmon hugged him too, then punched him playfully on the arm. “You're looking skinny; haven't you worked out at _all_ in the past ten years? Or are you letting your new _human_ do all the heavy lifting?”

 

“No way!” Agumon said, lifting his chin proudly. “I can still kick _your_ lazy butt!”

 

With that, a sort of dam seemed to break. The newcomer digimon hopped forwards to greet their apparently old, familiar friends, and even MagnaAngemon knelt down to join the reunion.

 

Not all of them seemed excited about this, however; Andrew could see Impmon hanging back, looking confused. And Lopmon was huddled behind Andrew's legs, twisting his ears nervously. Andrew gave him a little pat on the head, wondering what was wrong.

 

“So- Desoto said you're new Chosen Children?” the teenager with the long black hair walked towards them.

 

“Yup!” Megan stepped forward to meet her. “And I suppose you're our predecessors?”

 

“I suppose,” the other girl said. “My name is-”

 

“Wait, wait, wait,” Cameron said, excited. “Leomon showed us a picture of you back at Digiopolis. Lemme see if I can guess you all.”

 

He pointed at the tall girl. “You're Junko, right? And your partner is Wormmon. Shortstack here is your sister Aiko, and her partner is Bearmon.”

 

“Um, yeah, you got that right,” Junko said, giving him a weird look.

 

“I'm not short!” Aiko protested.

 

“The cute girl in the sweater is Ridley, and she's with Tentomon” Cameron continued. The girl made a spluttering sound and hid her face in her hands, and Aiko giggled. “And you in the kilt- he said you have two names, and I can't remember either of them right now.”

 

“Call me Adam for right now,” he said dryly. “And it's a skirt, not a kilt.”

 

“Gotcha,” Cameron said, giving him finger-guns. “And you're Gatomon's human. But- wait, there's only four- well, eight- of you. Shouldn't there be one more set?”

 

There was a beat of heavy silence, and the original Chosen Children exchanged worried looks. But before anyone could give an explanation, a familiar voice interrupted them.

 

“ _ **You're no match for me!** **”**_ The Glitch crowed. It rose up, and beneath it's massive, twisting form, something like a heat mirage rippled along the ground, distorting the world as it spread. _**“** **I'm going to infect this entire rotten world, and there's nothing you can do to stop me!”**_

 

“ _Still as arrogant as ever, I see,”_ Vega growled, and shot a lance of red light towards the Glitch.

 

“We need to shut this down _now_ ,” Junko said. “If those two keep fighting, they're taking everything down with them.”

 

“ _Oh no you don't,”_ Vega's voice crackled out, sharp and angry.

 

All at once, a dozen more dolls appeared out of thin air to surround the Chosen Children. Andrew stumbled backwards, Lopmon clinging to his leg.

 

“ _Take them and end this farce. NOW!”_ Vega commanded, and the dolls began to march forward.

 

MagnaAngemon spread his wings and brought his sword up; in a single stroke, he completely demolished two dolls, which were immediately replaced. “I will not allow you to win this time, Vega!” he cried.

 

“Gatomon, help him!” Adam yelled, and the cat sprung out of his arms. In midair, it was engulfed in a piercing white glow, and reappeared as what looked like a beautiful lady version of Angemon.

 

She whirled around, flanking the side that MagnaAngemon had left undefended. “Holy arrow!” she cried, and a sparkling bow materialized in her hand. She drew back the string, and a glowing beam of light lanced out as she released it.

 

There was a deafening explosion as it struck, and dozens of dolls went flying. But more appeared immediately to replace them.

 

“How many more of these things does he _have?!_ ” Megan yelled in shock. “Agumon, evolve and help them!”

 

“No!” Junko grabbed her wrist. “The dolls are only a distraction- if we keep fighting them we're going to waste our energy and _they_ can destroy us with ease.” She pointed above their heads, where Vega and the Glitch were clashing in an awesome display of light and static.

 

“Well, we can't possibly face them head on!” Megan snapped. “Just _look_ at them!”

 

“What are we supposed to do?” Cameron asked.

 

“Angewomon, can you buy us some time?” Adam shouted up at their digimon.

 

Angewoman nodded. She drew her hands together like she was praying, then spread them out, and a bubble of energy surrounded the Chosen Children, pushing the dolls back. They battered at the invisible barrier, but couldn't break it down.

 

“That won't hold for long, but we're safe for now,” Angewomon said, touching back down. “We cannot defeat Jaime, or… the creature that has become the Glitch.”

 

“Then what?” Eleena growled. “Are you saying we're just doomed? Because I refuse to accept that!”

 

“We cannot defeat them,” Angewomon repeated. “But with our combined forces- and especially with the holy powers of Angemon and myself- we may still be able to heal them.”

 

Andrew's eyes grew wide. “What- _heal_ them? How?!”

 

Cameron looked up at Angewomon thoughtfully. “King Leomon told us that, with our crests, we have some power to heal corrupted digimon. And it's true- Eleena and I managed it. But- but heal the Glitch? I think that's a bit of a stretch.”

 

“And besides, the Glitch isn't even a digimon,” Eleena said.

 

There was a profound silence from the original Chosen Children. Behind him, Lopmon whimpered.

 

Andrew turned. “What's wrong?” he asked softly.

 

“My head hurts,” Lopmon whispered back, miserable.

 

“Junko...” Megan started slowly. “You just called Vega 'Jaime'. What… what is he? And what is the Glitch?”

 

They all jumped as a bolt of red energy crackled off the forcefield surrounding them.

 

“ _NO!”_ Vega screamed, and shot another bolt at them. _“THAT NAME DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE!”_

 

“You can't forget who you were, Jaime!” Junko yelled. “Who you _ARE_!”

 

“ _NO! I REFUSE! YOU WILL NOT-_ ” There was a horrible, staticky screech as Vega's symbol was twisted up in a tendril of the Glitch's grasp. His dolls froze, then began to fall limply to the ground like puppets with their strings cut.

 

“ _ **Quiet!**_ ” The Glitch snarled. _**“Let the children speak; let them tell of what you did to me.**_ ”

 

“Junko?” Desoto approached her and very gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “What happened?”

 

Junko swallowed, looking down at Desoto. She was trembling, and looked like she was in terrible pain.

 

She rubbed a hand across her face, and let out a long, shaky breath. “Once, a long time ago, there were five Chosen Children who protected the world. Me, my sister, Adam, Ridley… and a boy named Jaime.

 

~

 

Junko closed her eyes, and in her mind she conjured up his image; twelve years old, his blonde hair messy, falling over his blue eyes, a carefree smile stretching across his boyish face.

 

Jaime. He had been her best friend.

 

“He loved being a Chosen Child, and he-” Junko's voice choked out, and it took her a moment to find it again. “He loved his Digimon very much. They went everywhere together, they were… a perfect pair. For three years, we protected the digital world together- we made a good team. But one day, we were fighting against a very powerful enemy, and… Jaime's digimon died.”

 

Junko didn't like to think about that day; the look of horror on Jaime's vulnerable face as his partner dissolved into sparks of light in his arms, his cry of anguish. He'd completely broken down as the rest of them stared at him in horror.

 

None of them had never even considered that their digimon could die. That day had taught them otherwise.

 

There was a high-pitched whine from- from Vega, which was cut off as the Glitch squeezed him tighter.

 

“We were all devastated,” Adam said, “but Jaime took it the hardest, of course. I can't even imagine how horrible it must have felt… he felt like he'd failed his partner.”

 

Junko swallowed around the lump in her throat. “He… he drew away from us. We understood, we assumed he was grieving, but as it turned out, he was studying. Trying to learn how to manipulate the data of the digital world, because- because he wanted to bring his digimon back. And somehow, he succeeded. Just like that, his partner was there again, and everything was back to normal.”

 

It had been a miracle; they had all been overjoyed. Jaime had been ecstatic.

 

How were they supposed to know what he'd really done?

 

“That's how it felt, anyway.” Junko was a little surprised to hear Ridley speak up; she had been so quiet since they were freed, and Junko knew she didn't like talking in front of strangers. “But what he brought back was _wrong_. His partner's data was too decayed to keeps it's original form for long, and soon it began to corrupt.”

 

“It… turned into a monster,” Aiko said quietly. “It was scary.”

 

“Jaime kept trying to make it better, to _fix_ his partner, but it only got worse,” Junko said. “His digimon kept telling us he was in pain, that he wanted Jaime to _stop_ trying to keep him alive. But Jaime wouldn't listen.”

 

She heard a small, upset noise, and saw that the red-headed girl was holding a hand to her mouth; she looked sick. But she couldn't stop the story now.

 

“Finally, one day, he snapped.” Junko's voice began to tremble again, and she knew she couldn't hold on much longer. “He lashed out, and- and he killed Jaime.” Her voice broke off into a sob, and she wrapped her arms around her head, wanting to hide from the pain.

 

Living through that time had almost destroyed her, and telling this story- it felt like she was breaking all over again. _I can't do this,_ she thought. _I just- I can't!_

 

Aiko hugged her, and Wormmon crawled up her leg to nestle against her stomach comfortingly. She grabbed onto them, holding on for dear life and trying to hold back the sobs that wanted to tear out of her throat.

 

“By that point, he'd become so corrupted that there was no love or compassion left in him,” Adam continued grimly. “He wanted revenge for the pain he'd gone through, and he wasn't satisfied with just killing Jaime. He came after us next.”

 

“But as it turned out, Jaime wasn't dead,” Ridley said. “At least- not entirely. He'd saved a backup of his consciousness, and he came back- but not like he was before. Like he is now- as _Vega_.”

 

They all looked up at the shimmering symbol held tight in the Glitch's grasp. Vega was struggling, his symbol flickering and warping, but it was obvious he was losing against the monster he had created.

 

Junko's arms tightened around Aiko and Wormmon. _Not like this… I can't watch him die again._

 

But she couldn't break down; she had to stay strong. For her sister, her digimon; for the team.

 

So she cleared her throat, and kept talking. “He captured us. He sealed us away in the barrier, to keep the Glitch- his digimon- tethered to life.”

 

“He betrayed us,” Ridley said, her voice flat and angry.

 

“He wasn't in his right mind,” Junko said, the tears welling up and falling down her cheeks. “He- he just wanted-”

 

“He just wanted to keep his digimon alive,” Adam said softly, sadly. “He- he just didn't want to lose his best friend.”

 

“ _ **His 'best friend' DIED,”**_ The glitch roared, squeezing Vega harder. _**“All you were keeping alive was a shadow of him- a twisted, pathetic thing. Do you know how much pain I was in, sealed away in your cage? Ten years I rotted in there!”**_

 

“ _I just-”_ For the first time, Vega's voice didn't sound like a machine- he sounded like _Jaime_. Junko sobbed at the sound. “ _I only wanted to protect you!”_

 

“ _ **YOU WERE TORTURING ME!**_ ” The Glitch screamed. _**“You never cared about me, all you wanted was to deny what had happened! You couldn't let me go, and you made ME suffer for it! YOU HURT ME!”**_

 

“ _I DIDN'T MEAN TO!”_ Vega's form began flickering faster and faster, twisting and changing in the Gltich's hold. _“I just wanted you BACK, I couldn't stand it- You were the first friend I ever had! I felt so alone, and- and-!_

 

And the red symbol that represented Jaime's crest- the crest of love- faded away, and all that was left was a boy, crying helplessly as his corrupted digimon held him in a deathgrip. “I just- I loved you _so much_ , and I didn't want you to leave me behind!”

 

“ _ **You should have just let me die!**_ ” The Glitch's voice was suddenly wracked with grief, instead of rage. _**“I hurt so many people- I hurt my friends, my family, I almost destroyed the world we loved so much! How could my life be more important than that?!”**_

 

“I didn't want it to be like this!” Jaime cried. “I didn't want any of this! I was just a stupid kid, and I wanted you back- I couldn't think of anything else! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I never wanted-”

 

“ _ **It doesn't matter,”**_ The Glitch growled, and now, the rage was back. _**“We've gone too far now. This can only end if you die now- and this time, I won't leave any trace of you to hold me to this tortured half-life!”**_

 

Junko opened her mouth to scream- no, it couldn't happen like this! She couldn't lose Jaime, not again!- but before anything could happen, there was a small, startled yelp from behind her.

 

She was almost bowled over as a small but powerful body pushed it's way through the crowd- and she was shocked to realize that it was _L opmon_.

 

She hadn't seen him before, was he a chosen digimon now too?

 

He ran right up to the very edge of the barrier Angewomon had put around them, staring up at the Glitch, his eyes wide with shock and awe.

 

He pointed up at the Glitch. “Terriermon?!”


	23. Episode 23- Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- Illness mention, minor body horror.

All at once, the memories came flooding back to him.

 

_Lopmon was sitting in a sea of flowers._

 

__A light breeze blew them back and forth around him, tickling gently against his fur. In the distance,_ _low-flying clouds scutted along the high hills, and farther than that, he could just barely catch a glimpse of the sea._ _

 

_It was… peaceful._

 

_Peaceful, and lonely._

 

“ _Aww, why are you sitting up here by yourself?”_

 

_He turned to see that Terriermon had come up behind him, holding his paws coyly behind his back, his long green-and-white ears flapping a little in the breeze._

 

_Lopmon was filled with a mixture of happiness and jealousy to see his twin, a strange feeling that he had unfortunately become quite accustomed to over the past few months. He looked hastily back down at his knees._

 

“ _I like it up here,” he said, knowing he sounded pouty, but too dismal to care._

 

_Terriermon sighed and sat down next to him. “Lopmon, don't shut me out. I care about you.”_

 

_Lopmon turned away. “Don't you have important Chosen Digimon stuff to be doing?” he sneered._

 

_He KNEW he was being petty, but dangit, he just couldn't help it. Ever since his twin had been Chosen for that dumb pretty human, they'd spent more time apart than they had in their entire lives._

 

_He missed being with Terriermon, missed the carefree days they had spent together in the little glen they used to call home. Sure, sometimes food had been sparse, and it was cold in the winter. But they'd been together._

 

_Everything was ok when they were together._

 

_He felt a paw touch his shoulder, and twitched, resisting the urge to shrug it off._

 

“ _Lopmon, do you remember that one winter when we were little?” Terriermon asked. “When I fell into the lake?_

 

_Lopmon bit his lip, still refusing to meet his twin's gaze. “Yeah,” he muttered._

 

“ _And remember how I got pneumonia?” There was a hint of a smile on Terriermon's voice. “I was laid up for weeks, I got SO sick.”_

 

_He couldn't help twitching his ears in amusement. “Every five minutes, you'd be shouting for me to change your blankets, even though I was sitting right next to you and I told you you'd hurt your voice.”_

 

“ _Yeah.” Terriermon sat back, looking up at the sky. “I was really afraid you'd leave me.”_

 

_Lopmon whipped his head around, his eyes going wide. “What?! No! I'd never do that! Why would you even think such a thing?!”_

 

_Terriermon shrugged. “I just knew it was hard for you, that's all. You had to take care of me and forage and take care of the house all by yourself.”_

 

_He was right, it had been hard; in hindsight Lopmon wasn't sure how they'd survived the incident. He could remember how awful it had been, but by far the worst part of it had been the fear of losing his twin forever._

 

_Lopmon leaned forward and took Terriermon's chubby, cheerful face in his hands. “Now you listen here,” he said firmly. “I would never abandon you, no matter HOW hard it got. You're my SIBLING, and I love you- even when you're a pain in the butt!”_

 

“ _Of course.” Terriermon took his hands. “So why do you think I'd abandon YOU?”_

 

_Lopmon stopped, staring at him. “Well, but- this is different.”_

 

“ _Yes, it is,” Terriermon said patiently. “But that doesn't change how I feel. Listen, I love Jaime, but you're my sibling. My TWIN. And nothing is going to make me leave you behind, ok?”_

 

“ _...what you're doing with him is more important, though,” Lopmon said, feeling guilty now that he actually got a chance to talk about it. It wasn't like he wanted Terriermon to_ leave _his partner. They obviously loved each other._

 

“ _There's nothing more important than spending time with my baby sibling!” Teriermon tackled him in a rough hug, and the two play-wrestled for a while._

 

_They fell apart, laughing. After a moment, Terriermon grew still, and looked at him seriously. “...I'm really sorry I made you feel this way, though. Have I been ignoring you?”_

 

“ _Ah- no, I'm just- I'm just being selfish,” Lopmon said, pulling out of his twin's arms and sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck._

 

“ _You're not!” Terriermon insisted. “But you have to let me know if there's something you need from me, ok? I know I'm amazing, but you gotta talk to me. Twin code; we don't shut each other out.”_

 

_Lopmon giggled, and leaned in until their foreheads touched. “Twin code,” he repeated, and the two stayed there for a long time, playing and talking among the flowers._

 

Lopmon stared up at the horrible, twisted mass of static that had once been his dearest friend- his _sibling_.

 

How could he have ever forgotten?!

 

“It- it is you, isn't it?” He placed both his paws up against the forcefield. “Terriermon?”

 

The Glitch seemed to stare at him, making no sound except for a low, electric hum. Then it roared wordlessly, lifting Jaime high.

 

“JAIME!” Junko screamed.

 

“Angewomon, lower the barrier!” Adam yelled, and Lopmon stumbled forward at the forcefield disappeared.

 

MagnaAngemon leapt into the air and brought his sword down, slicing through the tendril that was wrapped around Jaime. He caught the boy in one hand and curled it to his chest, keeping him safe.

 

Lopmon scrambled to his feet and ran forward. For once he had no plan, took no time to consider; all he knew was that he HAD to get to Terriermon, and damn the consequences.

 

He bolted forward and charged straight into the corrupted mass of the Glitch. As soon as he touched it he felt a crackle of energy jolt through him, and got the feeling he- it- had tried to attack him.

 

“ _ **STOP IT!”**_ It- he- _Terriermon-_ screamed, pushing him back, hard. His voice was no longer loud and booming, but strangled and scared instead.

 

“Terriermon, It's _me_!” Lopmon yelled. He ran forward again, determined to reach him. “Please, you have to stop this! You're going to hurt yourself!”

 

“ _ **I DON'T CARE! I DON'T KNOW YOU!”**_ Terriermon wailed, his form twisting and writhing in anguish.

 

“Yes you do!” Lopmon battered against the staticky, formless matter beneath his paws. It felt almost like fur, but _wrong_ , all prickly and shifting. “I'm your sibling, I'm your TWIN! We promised we wouldn't leave each other behind!”

 

“ _ **GO AWAY!”**_

 

Another static sizzle ran through Lopmon's body, and he shook himself hard. _I need to get through to him, I need to remind him who he is!_

 

“You can't hurt me because we're family!” He yelled. “That's why your powers didn't affect me before! That's why I've been having those weird dreams! That's why- that's why I felt like there was something _missing_ all this time!”

 

All this time, there had been that massive hole in his memory, something so big he could hardly think around it. And all this time, it had been _him_.

 

How could he have forgotten? How could he _ever_ have forgotten?!

 

Tears began to spill down his face, hot as they soaked through his fur. “Please- please stop trying to hurt our friends. That's not what you are!”

 

“ _ **I'm a MONSTER**_ ”, The Glitch snarled, bucking under his touch- but not pushing him away anymore. “ _ **I'm not what I used to be! That digimon is GONE now!”**_

 

“NO YOU'RE NOT!” Lopmon insisted, holding on as hard as he could.

 

Terriermon moaned in agony, and when Lopmon looked up, he saw that it looked less like a stormcloud now, and more like- like a person. Massive, deformed arms curled around a head which shook helplessly back and forth. _**“It's too late… I can't… I can't go back to being- !”** _

 

Lopmon took in a deep breath, trying to calm down. “It- it's ok if you can't be- if you can't be exactly what you were before. I don't care if you're corrupted, ok? I don't care if you hurt people! I don't care if you can't go back to being a digimon! I just… I'm just happy you're still here, ok? I'm- I'm happy I get to see you again.”

 

He closed his eyes and leaned in, nuzzling into the Glitch's body, and really, it was remarkable how much it felt like soft fur. Just a little staticky, a little sharp around the edges…

 

The world around him grew quiet and still, like he had reached the eye of a great storm. And then softly, hesitantly, he felt little nubby arms wrap around his shoulders, and a soft, familiar face press into his shoulder.

 

He looked up, and there was Terriermon, smiling at him even with tears running down his face. There were little pops and faults in his body, like the recording on an old TV. But he was there.

 

He was _back_.

 

“You… you really mean it?” he whispered. It was strange to see him so hesitant, so vulnerable; he'd always been the confident one. “You… don't hate me?”

 

Lopmon couldn't help but laugh. He hugged Terriermon, pressing his nose into the nape of his neck. “Oh, Terriermon,” he said. “I couldn't hate you if I tried!”

 

The two of them held onto each other, laughing and crying and finally together again.

 

~

 

Junko was delighted, of course, to see The Glitch turn back into Terriermon- delighted and relieved- but as soon as MagnaAngemon set him on the ground, she was distracted by the fact that _she needed to get to Jaime as fast as possible._

 

She raced up to him, wrapped her arms around him and squeezed, nuzzling her face into his hair. “Jaime, Jaime, oh god.”

 

“Junko!” His arms sort of flailed around her, patting her on the back- or possibly trying to tap out. “I missed you too, but I kind of can't breathe!”

 

“This is a punishment hug, dummy!” Junko said, squeezing him harder before finally letting him go and holding him at arms length. “Do you have any kind of idea what you put us through?!”

 

“I know...” Jaime looked down, ashamed. “I can't- I can't ask you to forgive me, but… I want to apologize anyway.”

 

He stood up, his eyes creased with determination. Junko stayed next to him, her hand on his shoulder. It felt like he would disappear if she didn't keep touching him.

 

“I'm sorry,” he said, his voice loud and firm. “To all of you- Junko, Wormmon, Adam, Gatomo, Aiko, Bearmon, and – and Ridley, and Tentomon.”

 

He looked to each of his friends in turn, taking in a deep breath, like he could hardly believe he was there. “I know there's no way I can possibly make up for what I did to you as Vega… but if there's anything you _want_ me to do, please, tell me.”

 

“Hmmm.” Adam made a show of thinking the question through. “I sentence you to… more punishment hugs!” Then he ran forward and hugged Jaime from the other side, knocking him into Junko's chest.

 

“ME TOO!” yelled Aiko, diving at Jaime's stomach and latching her arms around him.

 

“Auugh! Guys, guys!” Jaime protested laughing. “Aiko, stoppit, you're tickling me!”

 

There was a cough, and they all looked up to see Ridley standing before them. Her arms were crossed behind her, and her big, dark eyes were serious. “You… you never meant for this to happen, did you?” She asked, her hands fidgeting. “You didn't- you didn't do this because you didn't care about us, did you?”

 

Junko's gut twisted in sympathy. Ridley and Jaime had been close before all this happened, and she had taken his betrayal… very hard.

 

 _She's more sensible than me,_ Junko thought wryly. She'd been ready to forgive Jaime from the start; she just wanted her _friend_ back. But Ridley's hesitance was more than justified… he had hurt them all.

 

Jaime swallowed. “I.. I didn't start out intending to hurt you.” he said, his voice wavering. “But when I became Vega, I… I had to throw parts of me away, to sustain myself. I lost all my emotional connections, and I couldn't- I couldn't see you as anything other than pawns.”

 

He bowed his head, and Junko could see tears beginning to drip down his cheeks again. “I didn't care, as Vega. But I promise- I _promise_ you that when I was human- now that I'm human again- I've never seen you as anything but my very best friends!”

 

He choked on a sob, and pressed a hand to his mouth, the tears streaming now.

 

Ridley nodded and walked forward. “Thank you for telling us the truth,” she murmured, and wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her forehead to his.

 

The five of them stayed like that for some time, just holding each other, and Junko didn't think she'd ever been happier. She finally had her friends, her _family_ back, and she didn't want this moment to ever end.

 

But eventually, Jaime pulled himself free. “There's one more apology I need to make.”

 

They parted to let him walk away. Nearby, the Chosen Children were watching at them with different expressions; Desoto and the tall blonde boy looked curious and pleased, and the short boy looked away awkwardly when she caught his eyes. The lanky, silver-haired girl was kicking at the dirt, frowning. The redhead was wiping furiously at her eyes.

 

Junko laughed under her breath; she supposed their reunion must look a little strange to someone who didn't know them well.

 

Jaime walked over to where Lopmon and the recently de-glitched Terriermon were still hugging, giggling and talking quietly with each other. He knelt down, and Terriermon turned to him.

 

“Terriermon,” he said quietly. “I- I can't- there's no way-” he bit his lip, more tears dripping down his cheeks. “I don't know how to- how to say...”

 

“Then don't say it.” Terriermon walked forward, and his his hands on either side of Jaime's face. “I forgive you, Jaime. Of _course_ I do.”

 

Jaime broke down then, crying for real. He wrapped his arms around Terriermon and pulled him into his lap, rocking gently.

 

Everyon watched them for a bit, just soaking up the love and relief that emanated from their embrace. Junko wiped the tears out of her own eyes as Aiko, Ridley and Adam crowded around her, wrapping their arms around each other.

 

Finally, it was over. They were all together again, and everything was going to be ok.

 

It was one of the new Chosen Children who finally broke the moment. “So what, we don't get an apology?” The tall girl asked, folding her arms.

 

“You don't _need_ an apology from him, Eleena,” the redhead scolded her. “It was the rest of us he screwed over!”

 

“Oh, I-I am really sorry to you as well,” Jaime said hastily, lifting his head. “I shouldn't have dragged you into this whole mess-”

 

“Oh nah, man, it's fine!” Megan said, waving her hand. “We got an exciting adventure and some kickass virtual pets out of the deal, we're cool.”

 

“Way to speak for all of us,” the blonde boy said, but not without humor.

 

“And watch who you're calling pets!” the Impmon standing at Eleena's side snapped.

 

Junko frowned briefly; she recognized all the other new Chosen digimon, but not him. Where had he come from?

 

“Yeah, that's just not on,” Lopmon agreed.

 

“Whatever. We're cool, aren't we?” Megan looked around at her friends, and there was a general murmur of assent.

 

Junko breathed out a sigh of relief. She'd been _ready_ to fight these new kids if they had a grudge against Jaime, but she hadn't particularly _wanted_ to.

 

Just then, the peace was broken by a sharp cry. Junko turned to see Terriermon holding his stomach, rocking his head from side to side like he was about to be violently ill.

 

“What's wrong?!” Lopmon darted back to his twin's side.

 

“The-the Glitch-” Terriermon winced as Jaime frantically patted his head. “It- it's still there- it's struggling to take control of me again. I don't think I can hold it!

 

Bursts of static were running up and down his body, warping his fur, like something was trying to crawl out of him.

 

Junko's stomach dropped; she thought they'd won!

 

“No- fight it!” Lopmon grabbed him by the paw. “You're going to be ok-”

 

But Terriermon pushed him back, and scrambled out of Jaime's lap. “No, stay away from me! It could hurt you! Everyone, get b-kkkghAAAAAAAHHHH!”

 

As he screamed, the Glitch burst free and flowed from his body like billowing steam.

 

“Angewoman!” Terriermon yelled, his voice strained. “Put a barrier around me! You have to contain it!”

 

“But you- you'll be trapped inside!” Angewomon protested.

 

“Just do it! I can't keep it contained, it will destroy everything!” He shouted.

 

Angewomon nodded tersely. “MagnaAngemon- help me!”

 

The two Holy digimon linked hands, and a barrier formed around the swelling Glitch. It quickly grew to fill the small, round space, swallowing up Terriermon's body, and began to strain against its bonds.

 

Jaime ran to the barrier, pounding his fists against it. “TERRIERMON, NO! NOT AGAIN!”

 

Junko followed him, grabbing him by his shoulders and pulling him back. “Stay away! If it breaks-”

 

But it didn't break- instead, there was an awful noise like sheet metal tearing, and inside the barrier, she saw a shimmering, ultraviolet rip in the very fabric of space itself.

 

She recognized it right away- it was a portal to Earth.

 

The Glitch siphoned off into the gap, and was gone in seconds, leaving the holy barrier empty as the tear knitted itself closed and disappeared.

 

The world went silent again. Angewomon and MagnaAngemon dropped their hands, the barrier dissolved, and Jaime fell to his knees on the ground.

 

“What- what just happened?” Desoto asked, his voice small and scared.

 

“I-” Junko swallowed. “I think it just… went to the real world.”

 

She felt numb- it was on Earth. _Earth_. Oh god- it was going to destroy _everything_.

 

A spike of panic shot through her- _Mother, Father! Our home, everything- it will destroy EVERYTHING?! What do we do?_

 

“Good lord,” Megan whispered. “How…what do we do now?”

 

“I'll tell you what we do.” Junko stepped back as Jaime rose to his feet, a look of determination on his face. He drew his digivice out of his pocket and looked down at it. “We follow it.”

 

And immediately, the panic in Junko's belly was replaced with a burning desire for justice. This was no time to be scared; they were going to find the Glitch again.

 

And they were going to _destroy it.  
_


	24. Episode 24- Homecoming

“What do you MEAN we could have gone home any time we wanted?!” Megan snarled, advancing on Jaime.

 

Jaime backed up, waving his arms in a conciliatory/defensive manner. “I'm sorry I didn't tell you! I just- when I was Vega, it was in my best interests to make you believe you were trapped here!”

 

“Yeah, I get that!” Megan said, clenching her hands into fists. “C'mere, I think you need a few more punishment hugs.”

 

“ _Megan.”_ Andrew came up to put a hand on her shoulder. “I know you're frustrated right now- we _all_ are- but right now, we need to focus on finding the Glitch and stopping it from destroying our world.”

 

Megan gritted her teeth. “I hate it when you're right,” she grumbled, but stood down, folding her arms and giving Jaime one last poisonous look.

 

“How do we even figure out where it's gone?” Junko asked.

 

“I can feels it's- _his_ \- presence,” Jaime explained. “I can follow him through. The rest of you just have to follow me.”

 

“We'll help you new kids,” Aiko said. “We used to do this sort of thing all the time.”

 

“Hey does this mean we get to go to the human world now?” Agumon asked. “I've always wanted to go there!”

 

“It's not much to get excited about,” Gatomon said. “It smells bad, and humans are meaner than digimon.”

 

“Tell that to the giant flaming boar that tried to _eat us_ when we came here,” Andrew said crossly.

 

A sudden, shrill voice interrupted their conversation. “Can we all just GET A _MOVE ON_ ALREADY?!”

 

Andrew stared down at Lopmon, shocked at his outburst.

 

Lopmon glared back at him. “My _twin_ is trapped inside the Glitch, we need to go save him _now!_ ”

 

There was a beat of silence. Then Jaime straightened up. “He's right; let's go.”

 

There was a general shuffling as the old digidestined paired up with the new ones to help them return to Earth. Adam took Andrew’s hand and gave him a wry smile. “You ready to go home?”

 

Andrew's stomach twisted. It was what he'd been longing for ever since he got here, but now it meant running into a battle that could easily kill them all.

 

He squeezed Adam's hand. “As ready as I'll ever be.”

 

“Take out your digivice and concentrate on where you want to go,” Adam explained. “Just- Earth in general, Jaime's link will guide the rest of us to the specific spot.”

 

Andrew did as he was told, closing his eyes and conjuring up images that meant _home_ ; a blue sphere spinning through space, a small house on the outskirts of town, a room, a cat, a pair of faces-

 

His stomach lurched as he was pulled into the dark, spinning space between dimensions. A bare moment later, he was spat out onto hard concrete. Someone fell heavily on his back, knocking the wind out of him.

 

He groaned. “Guh- yeah, that's fine, I didn't need those ribs anyway.”

 

Desoto rolled off him. “Sorry,” he said sheepishly.

 

Adam, who had landed gracefully on his feet, helped him up. He mumbled something, running the words together so Andrew couldn't understand him.

 

“Um. Come again?” Andrew asked, dusting himself off.

 

Adam's eyes widened, then he sighed heavily. “Putain, j'ai oublié,” he spat.

 

He wasn't speaking _English_. Andrew blinked rapidly.

 

“Oh, yeah,” Jaime called from where he was checking his digivice in the middle of the street they had arrived at, “I'm the only one out of us who speaks fluent English.”

 

“I speak some,” Junko said, and it was disconcerting to hear the heavy accent in her voice that hadn't been present in the digital world. “会話には十分ではありません私はそれでうまくいきません。私はそれでうまくいきませ

 

“That's… not convenient,” Eleena said, folding her arms.

 

“You're telling us,” Jaime said. “I can translate a bit, hopefully enough for us not to accidentally kill each other during a fight.”

 

“Lemme guess, the digital world has some kind of universal translator in it, like Star Trek?” Megan said.

 

“Exactly like Star Trek,” Jaime said with a grin.

 

“Hat jemand Star Trek erwähnt?” Ridley said eagerly.

 

Andrew's eyes widened. “Sprichst du Deutsch?”

 

Ridley grinned at him. “Ja!”

 

“Unser Großvater hat uns Deutsch gelehrt,” Megan chimed in.

 

“Das wird nützlich sein,” said Ridley.

 

“Our mom's folks were from Germany,” Andrew explained for the benefit of those that had had been following their conversation with questioning eyes. “Our granddad taught us some of the language.”

 

“Come _on_ guys, let's get a move on!” Lopmon urged them, frustrated. “Where even are we? The Glitch isn't anywhere nearby.”

 

“I wanted us to have time to prepare, so I brought us up a few miles away from it's entry location,” Jaime said. “It's not going to take it long to spread out, however.” He turned and started speaking urgently to Junko in what Andrew now recognized as Japanese.

 

Andrew looked around, taking in their surroundings for the first time. They were on a wooded road, houses spaced out along it at wide intervals. He felt a pang of familiarity; did he _know_ this place?

 

Suddenly, Megan grabbed his arm. “Andrew! Don't you know where we are?”

 

Andrew frowned. “Ummm...”

 

She rolled her eyes. “This is what you get for never going outside. Our house is just up that road!”

 

She pointed, and suddenly his perspective shifted and her realized exactly where he was. He hadn't recognized this road because he was usually in the backseat of the family van when he went down it, but she was right; they were in their neighborhood!

 

“Oh my god! That means-” He grinned at his sister.

 

“We're home!” she squealed, grabbing him around the neck in a tight hug.

 

He held her back, laughing helplessly. He could hardly believe that they'd finally made it!

 

“Wait- I've been down here before, too,” Cameron said. “Are we near Cedar Rapids?”

 

“Hey- I live in Cedar Rapids!” Desoto exclaimed. “That's quite the coincidence.”

 

“Not really,” Jaime said. “I- well, Vega- me AS Vega- I picked you all from places I was familiar with. Megan, Andrew, you live in the house I was born in. Cameron, my family moved to your house when I was ten. And I went to your school while I lived there, Desoto.”

 

“What about me?” Eleena asked. “I don't think this is anywhere near where I lived.”

 

Jaime shrugged. “The Glitch got a hold of your digivice. I don't know how he picked you.”

 

Andrew felt a tug on his pantleg, and looked down to see Lopmon staring up at him desperately. “Please,” he whispered. “Make them focus! They won't listen to me.”

 

Andrew's heart sank, but he put his hand comfortingly on his partner's head. “Megan- I'm sorry, but I don't think we have time to go see our parents,” he said sadly. “We have to go fight the Glitch _now_.”

 

“Well, I don't know,” Jaime said, a thoughtful smile appearing on his face. “Do your folks have a car we can borrow?”

 

 

~

 

Michael rushed to pack up his clothes and essential toiletries into his already overstuffed suitcase. The news PSAs had been advising people to pack light and move as quickly as possible, but if he was going to be on the road for who knew how long, he wanted his goddamn razor with him.

 

They were late anyway; the rest of the neighborhood had already evacuated. Several of their neighbors had stopped by to ask if they needed help but he and Angela had told them to go on ahead.

 

Instead of packing, they had spent the morning frantically trying to call every number they had collected in the past month, desperately trying to get news on their missing children. He'd been shouted at by a dozen police officers just today, berating him for tying up emergency lines, but he hadn't cared.

 

The world might be ending, but Andrew and Megan were out there somewhere, and the idea that they might get caught up in… in _whatever_ was happening in the city made him feel so sick he could hardly breathe.

 

He threw a final pair of socks into his suitcase and slammed it shut. Then he hauled it downstairs to the small mountain of luggage they'd already gathered.

 

Angela was sitting on the couch, staring blankly at the TV as newscasters debated fiercely about the origin of the _thing_ that had appeared early that morning. Nooks was curled up in her lap, purring, completely oblivious to the fact that she would soon be stuffed into the pet crate she hated so much.

 

He sat down next to his wife, kissing her gently on the cheek and wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “We should leave soon,” he told her quietly.

 

“I don't know,” she said, not taking her eyes off the TV. “What if… what if they come back here, and we're gone?”

 

He knew who she was talking about without having to ask. “...I don't know. Who knows if the house will even be standing after that thing comes this way?”

 

“It might not even reach us,” she said. Her voice was flat, her face expressionless. It was a look that tended to unnerve people; one of the detectives had called her cold, for not showing any reaction when her own children were pronounced missing.

 

Michael had wanted to break his neck.

 

It was how she dealt with stress. Michael knew that she was breaking down inside, but he allowed her the dignity and protection of her carefully constructed mask, a mask she only let down in the dark, when he held her and tried to comfort her as she cried to him.

 

In some ways, he felt it made her stronger than him. He was the one who tended to fly off the handle when the officers told them again and again that there was no new updates on Andrew and Megan's case. Angela was the one who kept him grounded.

 

“Even if it doesn't, I doubt they're anywhere nearby at this point,” he said, trying to keep his voice even. He had to be strong for her, too. “The police would have already found them if that was the case.”

 

Angela didn't react for a long moment. Then she nodded slowly. “You're right, I know, I just… I'm afraid this will make it so much harder to find them.”

 

He sighed, feeling sick. He didn't want to leave either; it felt like losing one more part of the family they'd managed to build for themselves.

 

If they didn't find them- no, he couldn't think that way.

 

He _couldn't_. It would kill him, to lose that hope.

 

She turned to kiss him, and then actually gave him a small, wry smile. “Who know? Maybe they'll come knocking on the door just as we carry our bags out.”

 

He laughed around the lump in his throat, and leaned in to nuzzle his face against hers.

 

Just then, the doorbell rang.

 

They pulled back, staring at each other.

 

Michael swallowed. “It's probably one of the neighbors; I'll go get it. You put Nooks away, alright?”

 

She nodded, and they both stood up and headed off in separate directions.

 

Michael took a deep breath, trying to calm down before he answered the door. He really didn't want to talk to anyone right now, but it could be someone who needed help. So he opened the door. “Hello, what do-”

 

“DADDY!”

 

A small body launched itself at him, twiggy but strong arms wrapping around his neck in a chokehold and legs clamping around his waist.

 

He stumbled back, his hands instinctively reaching up to steady a very familiar back against his body. “Megan?” he whispered, disbelieving- the looked down to see his _son_ standing on the doorstep. “Andrew?!”

 

“Hi Dad,” Andrew said, grinning and tearful, and rushed forward to hug him.

 

Megan dropped to the floor, clinging to him and looking up at him with huge, adoring eyes. “We missed you _so much,_ Daddy!”

 

There was a thump behind him, and he tore his astonished gaze off the faces of his children- his kids! Here, alive, safe!- so see Angela in the hallway behind him, staring at them in shock.

 

“Look, Angie,” he said, his voice choked with tears. “They're here! They're ok!”

 

She let out a strangled sound, her face crumpling- now, finally, the mask broke. She ran forward and engulfed their children in an embrace, sobbing loudly.

 

“Mom,” Megan sighed happily, tears trickling out the corners of her eyes.

 

Andrew was crying openly. Michael could feel wetness on his own cheeks, and his whole body was trembling with relief. He wanted to pinch himself, make sure this was all real- but god, if it was just another dream, he didn't want to wake up.

 

Right now, his family was safe in his arms. That was enough.

 

Angela was, surprisingly, the first to break the moment. She pulled back, swiping furiously at her eyes. “Where _were_ you?! The police couldn't find you anywhere! You were gone for over a _month_ , we were so worried about you!”

 

The twins looked at each other and gave identical sheepish grins. “That's… kind of a long story.”

 

All at once, Michael remembered the impending disaster. “Well you can tell it later; we need to leave,” he said. “You'll have to pack your clothes and anything else you need, there's a- a threat, and the city called for an evacuation. No one's sure what exactly is happening, but-”

 

“Yeahhh, about that,” Andrew said, rubbing the back of his neck. “We… kind of know exactly what _is_ going on.”

 

“And it may be partly our fault?” Megan said doubtfully. “But we. Um. Kind of can't leave yet.”

 

Angela frowned. “What do you mean? Does this- does this have something to do with why you were gone?”

 

“Yes,” Andrew said. He straightened up and wiped his eyes on his sleeve. “Like we said, it's a long story.”

 

“Well, start telling it,” Michael said. He couldn't possibly imagine what his kids could have to do with whatever was happening in the city, but it was at least worth hearing them out.

 

“First,” Megan said, “We have some friends you need to meet.”

 

~

 

“What.” Dad said flatly. “The HELL. Are _t_ _hose?_ ”

 

This was not going well.

 

Andrew could hardly believe that he was finally seeing his parents again, after spending so long trapped in the digital world.

 

But he could definitely believe that they weren't taking in the Digimon very well.

 

“Our friends!” Megan said, gamely ignoring their obvious horror.

 

“And the monsters?” Mom asked.

 

“Also friends. They're called Digimon.” Megan folded her arms. “C'mon, don't be scared; these guys have been protecting us for the last month.”

 

The Chosen Children and their partners were standing out on the lawn, looking up at the scene with various expressions of awkwardness.

 

Well, not _everyone_ looked awkward.

 

“Are you Megan's parents?” Agumon asked. He bounded up the steps to the porch, ignoring as both adults flinched back, drawing Andrew and Megan close to them. “She's told me so much about you!”

 

“Um… that's nice.” Andrew felt Dad's fingers gripping tightly into his shoulders.

 

“This is Agumon,” Megan said cheerfully. “He's my partner.”

 

“Lopmon is mine,” Andrew chimed in, pointing down to where Lopmon was fidgeting, obviously impatient for them to leave.

 

“So they were the ones who… took you away?” Mom asked, barely containing the edge of anger in her voice.

 

“No!” Andrew said. “That was- it wasn't any of our friend's fault.”

 

He saw Jaime look away guiltily.

 

“We were all the victims of something we couldn't control,” Megan said. “We were called to fight in a place called the digital world. The thing that's attacking the city- that's what we were fighting.”

 

“The Glitch,” Andrew supplied.

 

Dad put a hand to his forehead. “So let me get this straight- you're claiming that you were pulled into an alternate dimension on the internet, and fought against unimaginable horrors with a bunch of Neopets?”

 

“Basically,” Megan said. “And now we have to fight it here.”

 

“No.” Mom said immediately, in the kind of tone that would normally have Andrew shrinking back and saying 'yes, mother.' “No, you're coming with us, and we're getting out of here before 'the glitch' can hurt us.”

 

“It's not that simple,” Megan argued.

 

“We just got you back,” Dad said, and the fingers digging into Andrew's shoulder got tighter. “We can't loose you again.”

 

“We're the only ones who can fight this!” Megan pulled out from Mom's grip and spread her arms wide. “Let me guess, the police, the firefighters, the national guard- they haven't been able to do anything against it, have they?”

 

There was a beat of silence as their parents exchanged a heavy look. “And how exactly do you plan to fight it with those stuffed animals?”

 

“I get the feeling that was intended as an insult,” Impmon said crossly.

 

“Shut up, you are a stuffed animal,” Eleena said.

 

“Trust me, they get much more intimidating,” Megan said with a grim smile.

 

“It's too dangerous,” Dad insisted. “The government will find some way to take care of it-”

 

“Well if they don't do it soon, it's going to eat the entire world!” Megan's voice was getting louder, and Andrew was afraid he was about to witness a shouting match between her and their parents.

 

“You're coming with us, and that's final!” Mom snapped.

 

He expected Megan to start yelling- but instead, she took in a deep breath, and her face got frighteningly chilly. “If that's how you want to be, let me tell you how it's going to be; you either let us go, or we make you let us go by _force_. I don't want it to go that far, but trust me, I am not above fighting you for your own good.”

 

Her hands were clenched into fists, and she was starting to shake. She looked… dangerous. Their parents looked disturbed at the sudden change in her demeanor.

 

“Megan...” Agumon said hesitantly, that same quiet, scared tone in his voice that had worried Andrew earlier.

 

They couldn't afford to fight their parents- and besides, Andrew didn't _want_ to. He put a hand on his sister's back. “Megan- stop. It's ok.”

 

She looked at him, angry- but he could see the fear beyond the anger now. She stood down, and he stepped forward.

 

“Mom, Dad- I know you want to keep us safe,” he said softly. “But we're really the only ones who can stop this, and if we don't- no one will be safe anymore. It's our turn to protect _you_.”

 

They stared down at him. After a moment, Dad spoke. “We- we just got you two back. We thought- we were so scared we'd never _see_ you again.” He swallowed, eyes shining, then put his hands over his face. “If you got hurt, we'd never forgive ourselves.”

 

“I'm sorry.” Andrew sighed. “I… can't imagine how it must feel, for us to put this on you. But we _have_ to fight, or we're not gonna survive.”

 

“Just tell me this,” Mom said, and her eyes on them are intense. “Do you think you can win? Are you going to get out of this… without getting hurt?”

 

Andrew opens his mouth, but the words of comfort he wants to give her don't come. He looked at Megan, and her mouth twisted.

 

“Yes, we can win.” They both turned in shock to see Desoto walking up the steps to join them on the deck. He put a hand on either of their shoulders. “Mr. Paul, Mrs. Paul- your kids aren't fighting alone. We're all with them, and I promise you- I _promise-_ we'll bring them back alive and well.”

 

The conviction in his voice and eyes was undeniable. Andrew was shocked, and more than a little impressed; he had no idea where this new found confidence had come from, but he was proud of his friend.

 

Their parents looked at each other silently for a long time. Then Dad sighed, his shoulders relaxing. “If- if you come back with a single scratch on either of you, you're both grounded for life,” he said.

 

Andrew giggled, and Megan laughed loudly in relief, clapping her hands together. “Well, now that that's sorted, can you give us a lift? We've got a playdate with destiny.”

 

“That was corny as hell,” Andrew scolded her.

 

“Good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations: (I used Google translate for these, so my great apologies if I made any mistakes)
> 
> Putain, j'ai oublié – Damn, I forgot. (French)
> 
> Hat jemand Star Trek erwähnt?- Did someone mention Star Trek? (German)
> 
> Sprichst du Deutsch?- Do you speak German? 
> 
> Ja!- Yes! 
> 
> Unser Großvater hat uns Deutsch gelehrt- Our Grandfather taught us German.
> 
> Das wird nützlich sein- That will be useful.


	25. Episode 25- Save the World

Lopmon groaned as Agumon leaned his full weight onto him. “Please get off me.”

 

Agumon ignored him, pressing his face up against the window. “Wow, we're going so fast!”

 

“De, your knee's in my gut,” Andrew complained behind them.

 

“I'm sorry, I can't move it!” Desoto said. “Unless- Adam, can you squeeze back a little bit?”

 

“Don't look at me, I can barely breath back here,” Adam shot back.

 

Lopmon curled his arms over his head. They'd been riding in this 'car' for about twenty minutes, but it felt like it had been _hours_. He didn't particularly enjoy being cooped up in a tiny metal box that bumped and rattled along, squashed in with roughly two-dozen sweaty humans and digimon.

 

But worse than that was the anxiety eating its way through his stomach. If they didn't get there in time, if they were too late- they may not be able to save Terriermon from being stuck as the Glitch forever.

 

Maybe they were already too late; maybe he had already been consumed by it, turned into a mindless creature of rage and destruction…

 

Lopmon pinched himself, scowling. No- he couldn't afford to think like that. He HAD to believe he could save his sibling.

 

He'd already lost Terriermon once. He wasn't going to lose him again.

 

Suddenly the car lurched to a halt.

 

Megan leaned forward. “What's wrong?” she demanded.

 

“It- it's right there,” Angela- one of Andrew's 'parents' as they were called- said tensely. “I can see it coming up along the river.”

 

Lopmon squeezed up behind Agumon to peer out the windshield, and in the distance he could see the awful, throbbing shape of the  Glitch slowly making it's way towards them, devouring  everything in it's path.

 

“Keep driving,” Jaime said. “We can probably get close without it noticing us-”

 

“There's a blockade, too,” Michael said, pointing out the shape of several humans guarding a flimsy wooden gate across the road ahead of them. “They'll try and stop us, they don't want civilians getting near that thing.”

 

“Ram it!” Megan shouted excitedly.

 

Andrew elbowed her. “ _O_ _r_ , we could have one of our Digimon evolve to carry us, and NOT risk life and limb in pointless action stunts.”

 

Megan stuck her tongue out at him. “You're no fun.”

 

“Open the window, I'll do it!” Patamon said.

 

Andrew cranked down the window that he was mushed up against, and Patamon slipped out. Moments and a blinding flash of light later, Angemon was kneeling next to them on the road.

 

“Hang on!” he said, and carefully lifted the van with both hands. Lopmon's stomach lurched at the sudden loss of gravity, and everyone in the car screamed as they were jostled about.

 

Angemon made it over the blockade in a single hop, and jogged towards the Glitch. He ducked behind a tall building a safe distance away and set the van down very gently.

 

The doors opened and the Chosen Children and their digimon sort of poured out, stretching and muttering to each other. Lopmon heaved a sigh of relief as he stumbled out onto the pavement, finally able to breath again.

 

He looked around for Andrew, and found him with Megan over by their parents. They were huddled together in a four-way embrace, all of them looking a little teary.

 

“Be careful, ok?” Angela told them, wiping her eyes as she pulled away. “If anything were to happen to you-”

 

“We'll be ok,” Megan promised firmly. “We'll come back safe and sound.”

 

“ _You_ be careful,” Andrew said. “You can stay nearby, but don't wait for the Glitch to get close. At least drive down past the bridge.”

 

“Don't worry about us,” Michael said gruffly, and hugged them both on more time.

 

Lopmon watched as Megan and Andrew finally walked away from them. Angela caught his eye, and lifted her chin, seeming to say, “Take care of them, right?”

 

He nodded briefly, and she looked away, grimly satisfied. The two of the got back into the car, and backed up a small distance, watching them through the windshield; they seemed unwilling to leave.

 

“Alrighty!” Megan said with forced cheerfulness. “Who's ready to kick ass?”

 

“And hopefully not get our asses kicked,” Cameron muttered.

 

“Everyone, evolve!” Junko called, and everyone got out their digivices.

 

Lopmon closed his eyes, bearing down on the feeling of growth as he evolved quickly to Turuiemon, then from Turuiemon to Antylamon.

 

He looked around at his teammates- old and new- pleased that everyone seemed to have achieved their Ultimate forms without any trouble. It was a little surreal, seeing the original Chosen Digimon evolve again- mostly it was odd to finally _remember_ them and what their more advanced forms were.

 

Tentomon was now MegaKabuterimon, their blue carapace glittering in the low sunlight. Bearmon evolved to Monzaemon, and it was truly surreal to see his tiny human sitting on his shoulder like a little girl with a MASSIVE yellow teddy bear. Wormmon had turned to Jewelbeemon, standing there in a fighting stance with Junko clinging to his back, looking determined.

 

And dominating the entire scene was MagnaDramon, her long, fluffy, serpentine body making all the massive buildings surrounding them look like toys. As Angewomon's Mega evolution, she was the most powerful digimon they had on their side.

 

Lopmon just hoped that between her and the rest of them, they could save his twin.

 

He knelt down, and held his hands out for Andrew, who climbed aboard. Lifting him up, he asked, “Are you ready for this?”

 

Andrew climbed onto his shoulder, and placed a hand against his cheek. “As ready as I'll ever be,” he said wryly.

 

Lopmon close his eyes, and allowed himself a small smile. “Sounds about right,” he said, and turned to face the Glitch.

 

He watched it's writhing, bubbling form expand, slowly engulfing more and more buildings, and he narrowed his eyes.

 

_I'm getting you out of there, Terriermon,_ he thought, and jumped into action.

 

~

 

Sitting on Jewelbeemon's back, the air flowing through her long hair as he leapt forward to attack the Glitch; it brought a fierce, nostalgic joy to Junko's heart. She wasn't necessarily happy to be fighting, (She certainly wasn't happy her friends were in danger,) but this just felt so _right_.

 

“ _Spike Buster!_ ” Jewelbeemon cried, thrusting his spear into the air. A shockwave rippled out from the tip, and the Gltich recoiled as it reached it's roiling mass.

 

He landed on a nearby high-rise, letting the others overtake him. “We need to be careful,” he said. “The Glitch seems to be less conscious now, but I get the feeling it's smarter than it looks.”

 

She fisted her hands on his shoulders and nodded tightly. “My power is yours,” she said quietly. “Take what you need.”

 

“Thank you,” he said, and she could feel the soft tugging at her soul as he linked their energy together.

 

She closed her eyes, focusing on the flow of power between them as he jumped back into the fray. She couldn't fight alongside him directly, but she could help _him_ fight.

 

She could only hope that would be good enough.

 

The fight carried on, the sound of her teammates calling out attacks and warnings ringing in her ears, The Glitch writhed below them, but she kept her eyes closed, focusing her entire being on helping her digimon.

 

A sudden, terrible shriek of pain and rage tore Junko's concentration away. She turned, and her heart stopped when she saw Magnadramon writhing on the ground, the Glitch wrapping it's tendrils around her pink hide.

 

Adam was clinging to her back, shouting at her, terrified. Behind him, a wave of corruption rose up, ready to swallow him down.

 

Junko moved on instinct, tugging at Jewelbeemon's shoulders. He turned obediently, totally in-synch with her as he darted in to save their friend. He just barely managed to pluck up Adam's body before the wave crashed down on the spot he'd been clinging to.

 

“Magnadramon!” he shrieked, reaching towards her, and started struggling and cussing them out. Junko didn't speak much German, but she caught the drift that he was angry at them for taking him away from his digimon.

 

“You're welcome,” Jewelbeemon said dryly.

 

“Everyone, over here!” Junko yelled. “Jewelbeemon, see if you can pull her out. Jaime, tell Adam to stay BACK, we don't need him getting caught too.”

 

They set Adam down and immediately jumped back to Magnadramon's side. Jewelbeemon got a hold of one of her great paws and started tugging as hard as he could.

 

The other digimon surrounded them. Monzaemon, Antylamon and MagnaAngemon all knelt down to help Jewelbeemon, but some of the others had more... _direct_ approaches.

 

“Duck!” Metalgreymon roared, then, “ _Giga Blaster!_ ” and two orange missiles shot out from his chest and exploded against the Glitch.

 

Junko huddled closer to Jewelbeemon's back, feeling heat ripple across her shoulders and the back of her head.

 

There was a peppering of gunshots, and she scowled, twisting her head around to see Beezlemon shooting at the Glitch. “Be careful!” she yelled at him.

 

“Heave!” Monzaemon bellowed, and everyone pulled at once, trying to pry Magnadramon free from the clinging corrupted ooze. “Heave!”

 

Magnadramon began to slowly slide from the Glitch's grasp. Junko closed her eyes and pushed her energy out, lending it to Jewelbeemon.

 

Finally, MegaKabuterimon rose up behind them. “ _Horn Buster!”_ they cried, and a great bolt of lightning arced up from their horn to crash down on the Glitch.

 

With a final, shuddering groan, the Glitch released it's prize. All the digimon toppled backwards as Magnadramon slid free, and Jewelbeemon just managed to roll to the side before he could crush Junko beneath him.

 

As soon as she was free, Magnadramon de-evolved all the way back down to Plotmon. Adam rushed to her side, sobbing, and wrapped his arms around her and talking to her in a low, relieved voice.

 

“I'm fine,” she assured him, touching his face gently.

 

Junko let out a sigh of relief. It had been a narrow escape, but they had managed to save their friend.

 

“Um… Junko?” Jewelbeemon touched her shoulder. “I think we may be in trouble.”

 

Junko looked up, and her heart sank as she saw what Jewelbeemon was referring to.

 

The Glitch wasn't just walling them off in the area Magnadramon had been trapped it; as they freed her it had crept around them, swarming over buildings and flowing through alleys until it had made a complete, unbroken ring around them.

 

They were surrounded.

 

~

 

Andrew backed up until he ran into Cameron. “This is bad, this is bad, this is bad,” he muttered, watching the Glitch approach them from all sides.

 

“What do we do?” Megan asked, her voice shaking.

 

“We can't fight it anymore,” Gatomon said, her voice despairing. “If even my power wasn't enough to defeat it...”

 

“Well don't _you_ have a well-developed ego,” Eleena snapped, but her voice shook with fear.

 

“We just need to keep _trying_ ,” Junko gritted out. “Don't care if we die, we just need to _fight_.”

 

“But what about our families?” Megan insisted. “We should go find them, warn them- we can take them to the Digital world, they'll be safe there until we come up with a new plan-”

 

“Only the Chosen Children can enter the digital world,” Jaime said flatly. “We've tried before.”

 

Megan groaned in frustration. “Then what's the god damn POINT of being a Chosen Child?!”

 

While the argument ran on, the Glitch was slowly encroaching on their little island of uncorrupted land. It wouldn't be long before it swallowed them whole.

 

Everyone kept arguing, but below that, Andrew started to hear other voices- soft, hissing whispers that seemed to wind around him, sliding up under the noise and crawling into his ears.

 

_Worthless,_ they whispered.  _No good to anyone, you let your friends down, you couldn't stop it, couldn't FIX it. You'll be alone and everyone you love will be gone, and it's all your fault, your fault, YOUR FAULT-_

 

Andrew clapped his hands over his ears, whining. “No, no, I'm not listening, you're wrong-!”

 

“Everyone SHUT UP!”

 

He froze. The whispers stopped- and so did the voices of his friends. He looked up to see Antylamon standing in the middle of the crowd, his fists clenched at his sides.

 

“I… I want to try going in,” Antylamon said. “Inside the Glitch, I mean.”

 

“Antylamon!” Metalgreymon gasped out. “You can't, you'll get corrupted!”

 

“He managed it once before,” Andrew said, then shut his mouth- wait a second, he shouldn't be _encouraging_ this kind of reckless behavior!

 

“And he couldn't hurt me the last time,” Antylamon said, frowning in determination. “His powers- they don't affect me, because I'm his twin. If I can just _reach_ him, make him _hear_ me- maybe I can get him to stop.”

 

“I suppose… if you think you could get at him from the inside, maybe it will work,” Jaime said.

 

Andrew stared up at him helplessly. He couldn't do it- not by himself! If something happened to him in there, Andrew would never forgive himself. He wouldn't let Antylamon risk himself like that, he  _couldn't-_

 

Then Antylamon turned to him, his face open and vulnerable. He touched a hand to his chest, and said, “Andrew… please. He's my  _sibling._ I have to at least  _try_ .”

 

His words almost broke Andrew's heart. He thought briefly of Megan- if it was her in there… wouldn't he risk everything to save her?

 

He took in a long, deep breath. Then he walked forward, and reached up. Antylamon knelt down in front of him, and Andrew took his massive face in both hands.

 

“I trust you,” he whispered. “You can do this, I _know_ you can.”

 

And, stunningly, in his heart of hearts, he actually of believed it.

 

“I'll come back,” Antylamon promised.

 

Andrew pressed a gentle kiss to the tip of his digimon's nose, and stepped back. Anytlamon turned and, with a single leap, disappeared into the Glitch.

 

Andrew watched him leave, emotion swelling in his chest.  It was so easy to trust him now; he couldn't believe there had ever been a time when he  had resented their bond.

 

The whispers had started up again, but this time, he paid no attention to them.  He put his hands over his heart and bowed his head.  _Come back to me_ , he thought, fiercely, lovingly.  _Come back safe._


	26. Episode 26- Evolution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: (also MASSIVE spoiler) character death

Antylamon took a deep breath, pausing before the Glitch.

 

It had been so easy last time, to just walk into danger. He had known exactly why he was doing it; he had to rescue his partner.

 

This time, he was leaving Andrew in danger, and the guilt tore at him. But rescuing his twin was just as important.

 

He closed his eyes. _I'm not leaving you_ , he thought, and walked forward.

 

This time, crossing into the Glitch was almost painful; static buzzed through him so hard he felt like his bones would rattle right out of his body. The tension forced him to de-evolve back down to his rookie stage, and he was buffeted by a strong current of flowing, corrupted data.

 

It wasn't anything like the austere, black-marble maze he'd seen before; everything was jumbled and strange, images and half-formed figures swirling around him like a fever dream.

 

He lost his footing and cried out as his body was dragged along, buffeted this way and that in swirling eddies of chaos. He could hardly breathe, and no matter how hard he struggled he couldn't make any headway against the current; it felt like he was drowning.

 

“Terriermon!” he yelled. “Terriermon, where _are_ you?! I need to-” His voice cut off as he was dashed against something hard. The air burst out of his lungs, and the current dragged his stunned body into the depths of the Glitch.

 

 _I'm losing myself_ , he thought, panicked but numb, his vision blurring at the edges and his thoughts slowing down. _It's consuming me!_

 

His movements became more and more sluggish as the energy drained out of him. He got the feeling that this was going to be the end of him; his body would dissolve into the Glitch, and he'd let everyone down.

 

 _Damn it all, I'm breaking my promise to Andrew_ , he thought dimly. _I shouldn't have tried to do this on my own… I'm no good on my own._

 

But then, suddenly- everything stopped moving.

 

His head slowly cleared, leaving him dizzy and sick. He blinked a few times, and saw that he was in a small clear space; a bare foot away the Glitch was whirling past him, but he seemed to be in some sort of protective pocket.

 

And right there in front of him was Terriermon, holding his arms out, his face creased in concentration.

 

Relief surged through him. “Terriermon!” he said, sitting up and rushing to his twin's side. “Oh thank god, I found you.”

 

“You need to get out of here,” Terriermon gritted out, sweat dripping down his forehead. “I can't keep you safe for very long, the glitch will consume us both!”

 

“No, I'm not leaving you!” Lopmon staggered forward to hold his twin. “We can fight it together! I can lend you my power-”

 

“No!” Terriermon's shoulders shook with the strain of holding the Glitch at bay. “I won't let you get hurt- not for my sake.”

 

“Well, I won't let you sacrifice yourself for me!” Lopmon half-yelled. “We can do this, I can help you!”

 

Terriermon shook his head, tears welling up at the corners of his eyes. “This isn't your problem! Just- just leave me here, let me keep you safe!”

 

“No!” Lopmon grabbed his face and forced him to look up. “I won't let you do this by yourself anymore. I'm not going to let you _suffer_ anymore.”

 

“Why won't you-” Terriermon sobbed, then gasped in a breath. “Why won't you let me do this for you?!”

 

“Because I _love_ you,” Lopmon said

 

“You don't under _stand,_ ” Terriermon said. “I'm a monster, Lopmon. I hurt people- I killed them I killed Jaime, I tried to kill our friends, I- I _tormented_ helpless digimon! I hurt _you_.”

 

“You _couldn't_ hurt me,” Lopmon argued.

 

“I tried to,” Terriermon sniffled. “I said such terrible things to you...”

 

“None of this was your fault,” Lopmon said, placing a hand on Terriermon's cheek. “You didn't _ask_ for this.”

 

“But it happened anyway!” Terriermon shook his head fiercely. “And this- this is my punishment. Don't you understand? It's what I deserve.”

 

“Don't say that,” Lopmon said, horrified. “Don't you even think it!”

 

“I am going to stay here,” Terriermon panted out, gritting his teeth. “And if you don't leave, I'm going to _make_ you leave. And I'm going to disappear like I should have years ago.”

 

Terriermon lifted his chin, and his eyes began to glow. All the fur on his body raised up, and Lopmon had no idea what strange power was filling him right now, but he understood that he was about to use it to send Lopmon straight back out of the Glitch.

 

“No!” he cried, desperate.

 

“Goodbye, Lopmon,” Terriermon whispered.

~

 

The Glitch was closing in around them.

 

Junko clung tight to her sister's hand as their digimon formed a ring around them, trying to protect their humans, but their attacks just bounced off the swirling surface of the Glitch as it slowly crept closer and closer to them on all sides.

 

The humans were clustered close together, old and new Chosen Children alike. Adam was holding Plotmon and whispering assurances to her. Andrew was sitting on the floor with his arms around his head, whimpering and rocking back and forth. Megan was screaming curses at the Glitch.

 

Aiko was clinging to Junko, her face pressed into her side. She was trembling with fear, and that hurt worse than anything else.

 

 _What can I do?_ Junko thought, desperate. _How can we fight this? How can I protect my family?_

 

They had come so far, through so much… they'd come back to _life_ , for god's sake. It couldn't end like this.

 

She wouldn't _let_ it end like this.

 

But how could they fight anymore? Their digimon were wearing out. They were completely overpowered, outnumbered by a single enemy.

 

Unless Lopmon came up with some miracle solution from within their enemy, (which was seeming less and less likely with every passing minute,) they were trapped. There was no way they could fight the Glitch and win.

 

But… was fighting their only option?

 

Junko raised her head. “Plotmon- you said something earlier, about healing the Glitch.”

 

“I-I don't know,” Plotmon said nervously. “It made sense when I was Angewomon, but everything is so confusing now… I don't know if it would really work.”

 

“Well, what other choice do we have?” Jaime asked. “And if it… if it might help Terriermon and Lopmon...”

 

Megan stopped screaming and turned to look at them. “What are you talking about? What can we do to help?”

 

Junko switched to English. “We can heal the Glitch.”

 

“Well, we can _try_ , anyway,” Jaime said.

 

“I mean, it's ba better plan than just standing around and waiting to die,” Eleena said. “I'm in.”

 

“I suppose it's worth a shot,” Ridley muttered.

 

Junko nodded firmly. “Ok, then. Everyone, your digivices!” she called.

 

The other children obeyed, and their digimon formed up around them even tighter. As soon as their digivices began to glow, the glitch seemed to realize what was happening, and writhed madly around them.

 

It shot out tendrils of it's stormy mass towards them, which the digimon beat away to the best of their abilities. More and more of the Glitch converged around them, kept just barely at bay by the light emanating from their digivices.

 

Junko closed her eyes, focusing down on the healing. It was hard; when her energy touched the Glitch, screams echoed through her mind, tortured howls of pain and grief and rage.

 

But she bore down, _forcing_ her power forward, trying to reach as deep into the Glitch as she could project her healing intentions.

 

And finally, from the depths of the swirling mass of chaos… she felt something answer back.

 

~

 

Emotion swelled up in Lopmon's chest; a deep, aching rage, a terrible, hollow sadness, and pure, unadulterated fear- fear of losing his twin _again_.

 

It was all too much to handle. So he did the only thing that made any sense for him to do.

 

He twisted his head back, and slapped his twin right across the face with one ear.

 

Terriermon fell back, sliding across the floor of the bubble he'd created and thumping against the back wall. He raised a hand to feel at the red mark on his cheek.

 

The bubble trembled around them, the Glitch bucking against Terriermon's power now that he had lost his concentration. But Lopmon ignored it.

 

“Now you listen here!” Lopmon said, riding the wave of his own anger and adrenaline. “If you're so concerned with not hurting me, then how could you possibly try and make me leave?”

 

“B-but, Lopmon-” Terriermon stammered out, but Lopmon cut him out.

 

“I didn't come in here to be eaten by the Glitch,” Lopmon said stubbornly. “I didn't come here on a suicide mission, I came here to rescue you- AND in the hopes that somehow, together, we could fight the Glitch from the inside. If you care about our friends _lives_ , then you should be willing to work with me on this!”

 

Terriermon looked down, rubbing at his arm. “You- you don't understand. The Glitch is _me_ , Loppy. I'm all- all twisted up and corrupted inside… it's gotten so big that it has a will of it's own now, and this little bit that you see here- that's all that left of my body and my consciousness. But I'm still attached to it.”

 

Lopmon blinked slowly. “So… in order to destroy the Glitch...”

 

“You'd have to destroy me,” Terriermon said quietly. “I- I didn't want to say it to you… I didn't want you to hesitate.”

 

Lopmon stared at him for a while. His heart hurt to see his twin like this; he had always been so cheerful, so full of life and hope when Lopmon knew him before.

 

But no one felt like that all the time. Lopmon understood that all too well. _There must have been so many times that he felt miserable, but he put on a brave face so I didn't worry,_ he realized. _All this time, he was taking care of me._

 

It humbled him- how much _love_ Terriermon must have felt for him. He took in a deep, unsteady breath, hardly able to even comprehend it.

 

The he took Terriermon's paws in his own. He leaned in, pressing his forehead against his twin's. “Then we won't destroy the Glitch. We'll find another way.”

 

Terriermon stared at him, his eyes wide. “Lopmon...”

 

“I doubt I could even hurt you if I wanted,” Lopmon said with a little smile. “We've already proved that our powers don't work on each other. Besides- I'm tired of fighting. I'm sure there's another solution.”

 

“...How can you say that?” Tears welled up in Terriermon's eyes, and he bit down on his lower lip. “How can you hope for something like that? It would take a miracle to get me out of here now...”

 

“Jeeze, Terriermon, don't you get it by now?” Lopmon chuckled, his own eyes getting damp. “I got you _back_. I thought you were gone forever, but I still got to be with you again… after that, how can I not believe in miracles?”

 

Terriermon let out a sob and leaned in hard, wrapping his arms around his twin's body and holding him tight. “Thank you,” he whispered. “ _Thank you_ for not abandoning me.”

 

He returned the hug, nuzzling into Terriermon's shoulder. “Twin code, remember?”

 

“Twin code,” Terriermon said, and giggled wetly.

 

The two of them sat there for a moment, holding each other and laughing softly. And as they held each other- something strange began to happen.

 

A warm glow surrounded their bodies. Lopmon looked up, blinking around in confusion; it took him a moment to realize that the light was emanating _from_ them.

 

He was evolving- they both were evolving! And as the light from their evolution grew and grew, it pushed back the Glitch, extending the protective bubble Terriermon had created.

 

As their energy began to swirl out from their physical forms, Lopmon felt something touch his mind; it was so sudden and unexpected that he almost flinched back, but immediately a gentle, familiar feeling surrounded him, calming his fears.

 

It was… Terriermon. Their minds, their souls, even their bodies- they were joining together as they evolved.

 

They were evolving _together_.

 

Before Lopmon could even process what was happening, it was already over, and… they weren't Lopmon anymore. Or Terriermon. Where two separate beings had stood a moment before, there now was a single digimon.

 

They looked down at themself; large, soft pink hands, framed by green metal gauntlets. A visor over their eyes overlaid information about their surroundings. They could feel the tight metal armour they were clad in, the short gliding wings at their hips, the massive gun holstered to their back.

 

They were an entirely new digimon. A digimon that, by all rights, shouldn't have even _existed_.

 

But they had no time for philosophical debates; as soon as the evolution glow faded, the Glitch swarmed them, attacking mercilessly and drowning them once more in the sea of chaos.

 

They struggled, and they were stronger together. But it was difficult because the glitch wasn't merely battering at them from all sides; it was in their head, too.

 

 _Stupid, useless, worthless_ , the voices hissed at them, twining through their brain like a nest of snakes.

 

_You betrayed them,_

 

_You killed them,_

 

 _You HURT them_.

 

_Monster! You're a monster!_

 

They clutched at their head, whimpering. It _hurt_ ; they had never realized, Terriermon- he'd been all alone, trapped inside of this for years and years, breaking and breaking and _breaking_ under the strain.

 

They- they- he- he began to separate, pulling away from his sibling, broken apart by the pain and the anger and the terror-

 

No. _No._

 

They closed their eyes, focusing inwards. They weren't going to be separated again; they were strong. They could fight this. They could _beat_ this.

 

Suddenly, they became aware of another presence- another set of voices, muffled but insistent, like someone calling to them from above the surface of a deep pool.

 

A warm, familiar sensation flowed through them, and their eyes shot open in shock as they began to make out words.

 

_We're here!_

 

_Don't give up, we're fighting for you!_

 

_Terriermon, hear me!_

 

_Lopmon, I know you're in there!_

 

_We'll help you, don't worry!_

 

“Our friends!” they whispered, and the glow began to intensify, as they felt the energy reaching out towards them from so far away.

 

Andrew. Jaime! Gatomon, Patamon, Bearmon, Agumon; Gabumon Tentamon Megan Ridley JunkoAikoAdamCameronDesoto- god, even Eleena and Impmon were calling out to them.

 

“I'm here!” they yelled, flinging their own power out to meet them. “I hear you! I can feel you all!”

 

The Glitch _writhed_ around them as the combined power of all the Chosen digimon and children flowed into their body, glowing in a white-hot aura around them. All that love, all that care and desperate desire to save them, gathered in one place- that power _burned_ inside of them.

 

They spread their arms out. “Everyone, thank you,” they said, and slowly, they began to rise.

 

~

 

Andrew watched with wide eyes as the Glitch began to glow, light spilling out along it's entire mass. As the light burned brighter and brighter, it began to burn up, particles raising up into the air and disappearing into the sunset.

 

It was working. It was _working!_

 

He could feel the energy being pulled from the core of his being, and he gave it freely. He could _feel_ his digimon inside of the Glitch, and he knew Lopmon could feel him too. It created this weird feedback-loop that was powering the slow degradation of the Glitch.

 

The Glitch began to draw up, withdrawing from the buildings and streets it had covered, leaving them pristine and uncorrupted in it's wake. It gathered itself up into a massive, trembling ball of energy, crackling and spinning like it was desperate to stop what was happening.

 

But there was no stopping the process that had begun; it coalesced down until it was the size of a mountain, a house, a bus, a car, until it was finally just a spinning orb of malice and chaos- and then, with a sound like thunder and a tremor that rocked the ground beneath their feet, it burst open.

 

And from it's depths, a figure rose, shooting up into the sky. A relatively small, humanoid digimon that soared up until it was perfectly silhouetted by the setting sun.

 

With trembling hands, Andrew pulled out his digivice and pointed it at the figure. _MegamechaCherubimon,_ the screen told him. _Type- Vaccine. Level- Mega._

 

“Nice,” was the only reply he could manage to choke out.

 

As soon as it reached the apex of it's flight, it began to fall, and as it fell it was enveloped in a clear white light. It drifted slowly down until it just barely floated above the ground, and then the glow faded and two tiny, tiny digimon fell unceremoniously to the pavement.

 

 

~

 

When he returned to the world, alone in his head once more, he was so drained he de-evolved all the way back into Conomon, his baby form. It was a little lonely to be one person again, but also a relief- being joined with his twin was overwhelming.

 

He looked up to see that all the digimon had gone back to their baby forms, drained after lending their energy into the healing process. They all came bouncing towards the two of them, cheering in shrill voices as they swarmed around.

 

“I knew we could do it!” Botamon cheered.

 

“I though we were all gonna die,” Yaamon said.

 

Leafmon sniffled loudly, tears falling from his eyes. “That was- that was so beautiful!”

 

He giggled. “Thanks, guys,” he said.

 

The Chosen Children were all there too whooping and grabbing each other in celebration. He saw Cameron pick Andrew up and start spinning him around, and Megan was singing something loud and off-key. Jaime grabbed Junko by the shoulders and planted a solid kiss on her cheek, causing her to flush a furious crimson.

 

But Conomon ignored all of the noise and attention. He only had eyes for the little white blob next to him; his dear sibling Zerimon, who blinked around, looking bewildered at all the attention.

 

Conomon bounced forward, (pushing rather rudely past Botamon and Poyomon, which he felt a little guilty about) and nuzzled into his Twin. “I can't believe we actually did it,” he said fondly. “I'm so happy you're safe.”

 

“I'm glad _you're_ safe,” Zerimon said. “Being a part of you- that was amazing, wasn't it?”

 

“Yeah!” Conomon said, bouncing excitedly- then stopped, a cold lance of panic going through him.

 

Something was wrong; Zerimon's body was flickering slightly, and beginning to turn see-through.

 

“What's wrong?!” Conomon asked, suddenly scared. “Is the Glitch coming back?!”

 

“Conomon...” Zerimon took in a deep breath, and looked at him with a sad smile. “I'm still- I died, that day. I should have been dead all this time. Now that the Glitch is gone... there's nothing tying me to life anymore.”

 

Conomon's stomach dropped. “No. no, that can't-”

 

“No!” Junko's voice cut him off.

 

Conomon looked up, surprised that she had heard him; the humans had given them their space, and they weren't talking loudly.

 

But she wasn't yelling at Zerimon at all; Jaime was flickering too.

 

“We can't stay,” Jaime said. “It's taken all of my energy just to stay this long, and I only did it because you needed me to help defeat the Glitch. I.. I'm really tired.” He laughed a little, like it was a joke, but his eyes were sad.

 

“You can't go!” Botamon protested. “Neither of you!”

 

“Yeah, we need you!” Adam said. “Not just for the stupid Glitch.”

 

“Y-you're leaving us?” Leafmon whimpered. “You can't! Not again!”

 

“You're our friends,” Ridley said, her voice choked up.

 

“It's not _fair!”_ Aiko was already crying, holding onto Jaime like she could make him stay.

 

“You backed yourself up before, didn't you?” Junko asked, desperate. “Just do it again!”

 

“But I didn't have enough energy to stay human,” Jaime explained. “If I stayed, I'd have to become Vega again, and I- I don't want that.” He looked down at his feet. “I lost all of my love, my compassion, everything that made me who I am. I hurt you. I could never do that again.”

 

“And I'd become the Glitch again,” Zerimon said. “Staying here would just hurt us, and hurt everyone. You have to let us go.”

 

The humans continued to protest, huddling around Jaime. But Conomon ignored them, suddenly furious. “You said you'd never leave me,” he accused Zerimon.

 

“I'm already a part of you, Sib,” Zerimon said fondly. “Haven't we already proven that?”

 

“It's not enough!” Conomon felt the tears starting to fall. “I want you- I-”

 

“I know, I know.” Zerimon moved close to him, giving him as much of a hug as they could get in these forms. “I want to stay. But I can't. And it… it would be cruel, for anyone to ask that of me.”

 

Conomon sniffed. He knew it was true, but he didn't want to admit it. “...I'm sorry.”

 

“Don't be,” Zerimon said. “I'm so happy you love me. I'm so happy I got to see you again; I'm happy that I was born as your twin. Dying doesn't make any of that less real.”

 

“What am I going to do without you?” Conomon said, helpless.

 

Zerimon giggled, even though tears were welling in his eyes now, too. “You're going to do _great_! You're a chosen digimon now. You have someone to be with you. You won't have to be alone.”

 

“And you'll have us,” one of the Punimon- Cameron's, Conomon thought- said.

 

Conomon bit back a caustic reply; he looked around at all the other digimon, who were in various stages of distress and tears, but giving the twins their space, and tried not to see them as interlopers on his private grief.

 

Zerimon was their friend, too.

 

“I don't want to leave you yet, either,” Zerimon said softly.

 

Conomon was silent for a long moment, leaning into his twin. He knew he couldn't convince him to stay- that he _shouldn't-_ so he just wanted to stay with him for as long as possible.

 

But just then, Jaime- who must have said something to make the humans let him, go, given them some words of comfort- walked over, and put his hand on Zerimon's head. “It's time.”

 

Zerimon nodded, and hopped onto his trainer's hand “We'll be together again someday,” he told Conomon, and there was no hint of doubt in his voice. “I'll be waiting for you, but don't come too soon, ok? Live a nice, long life for me.”

 

“I-I'll miss you,” Conomon whimpered. The two of them were already fading away, and he wished he could do something to make time stand still.

 

The humans were talking, Jaime was still talking even as he left, but Conomon heard none of it. All he could focus on, was Zerimon, who turned to him and smiled one last time.

 

“Be happy, ok?” he said.

 

And then he was gone.

 

Conomon stared at the space he'd left behind. The sky was turning dark above the tall buildings, and the last rays of light that filtered to the ground were a deep, vibrant orange.

 

Conomon wasn't alone for long; he felt Andrew walk up behind him and scoop him up in his hands. He was cradled gently against his partner's soft, warm chest.

 

“I'm sorry,” Andrew whispered. And Conomon started to cry, full bodied and earnest like a child, as the world turned dark around them.


	27. Episode 27- Not ok

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- Messy, painful grief.

The roads were deserted as they drove home in the dark, which Angela couldn't help but find eerie. She wondered how long it would take for the authorities to realize that the crisis was over, and for people to start returning to the city.

 

She wondered if anyone had seen what had actually happened. Would it be plastered all over the news tomorrow; video clips, speculation on late night talk shows?

 

She wondered if anyone had caught sight of the children and their monsters fighting against 'the Glitch'. They'd certainly given the police at that street blockade quite a shock.

 

Turning to look at the back seats, she saw that all the children were out cold, sleeping off the exhaustion from their battle. Directly behind her, Megan was holding a tiny black blob, the 'baby' form of her little dinosaur-like companion. (She had begun to explain all the different forms their digimon could turn into at the beginning of the drive, but had fallen asleep halfway through.)

 

Beside her, Andrew was almost completely curled around the little brown blob that had been crying so hard when Angela and her husband arrived on the scene.

 

As soon as she and Michael saw theGlitch disappear, they had left their vantage point (an overpass that gave them a good view of the battle) and driven back to the scene, desperate to see if their children were alright.

 

Her heart had momentarily stopped when she heard Andrew sobbing along with his digimon; her first, thought was that something must have happened to Megan.

 

But when they ran forward, their daughter was there too, trying to comfort her brother even though she was crying too. The entire group, digimon and humans alike, seemed to be in mourning.

 

Megan had tried to explain what had happened. Angela hadn't understood all of it, but she gathered that one of the 'Chosen Children' had died.

 

She felt sick, thinking about how it could have been Andrew or Megan. She and Michael had hugged them both and bundled them into the car, neither of them sure what to say to make it better except to take them home, where they would hopefully be safe.

 

Now it was like a bizarre carpool, driving down the empty highway with a group of unfamiliar children and their monster friends.

 

Angela still felt sick. She'd felt sick ever since she had to leave the children she'd _just_ gotten back, not knowing if they would survive long enough to return to her again. Sitting in the car with her husband, the two of them watching the battle rage on and waiting for it to be over, one way or another… it had been the worst moment of her life.

 

Well- no, not worse that the weeks they had spent in suspense, not even knowing where Megan and Andrew _were_. That had been her own personal hell, and she still wasn't sure how she'd managed to survive it.

 

Michael- he had helped. He'd been the only other person who understood her pain. They had held onto each other up throughout those awful weeks, and again tonight, standing on the overpass and silently praying for their children to survive.

 

She glanced over at him now. He had one hand on the steering wheel as he gazed pensively out the window.

 

“You know I hate it when you do that,” she said dryly.

 

He looked at her, confused, and followed her gaze to his hand. “Oh- sorry,” he murmured, switching to a two-handed grip.

 

“How are you holding up?” she asked.

 

He sighed. “About as well as can be expected,” he said. “You?”

 

Her lips quirked up into a grim smile. “Pretty much the same.” She reached over to touch his knee. “I… I don't know how we're supposed to deal with this.”

 

“Well, look at it this way,” Michael said, “they're home. They're safe.”

 

“But for how long?” Angela asked. “Are they going to have to fight again? What if they want to go back to that… other world?”

 

If they left again- she just, she wouldn't take it. She _wouldn't_. It would break her.

 

“Let's not worry about that now,” Michael said. “I… I can't worry about that now.”

 

He looked at her sideways, and she was surprised at the vulnerability on his face. He was so good at acting like nothing bothered him that sometimes she forgot how sensitive he really was.

 

She took a deep breath, then reached out to cup his cheek tenderly. “You're right. They're back; everything will be ok now.”

 

He leaned into the touch. “Yes. We'll be fine.”

 

She closed her eyes and tried to believe it.

~

 

Cameron woke up when the car pulled to a stop. He sat up, groaning as he massaged the awful crick in his neck from leaning against the window for an hour.

 

Punimon was cradled in his lap; he patted his head absently as the kid he was smushed up against- Ridley?- opened the van door, and he sort of poured out after her.

 

When had it gotten dark? They had arrived back at Megan and Andrew's house, so his sluggish brain eventually put two and two together to realize that he'd slept for the entire drive back.

 

They all sort of hung around on the lawn for a moment while Angela (Or should he call her Mrs. Paul? He never knew what to call other kid's parents) unlocked the front door.

 

The two groups of Chosen Children separated, the old ones talking quietly amongst themselves and the rest of them too tired to even speak. Megan had her arm slung comfortingly around Andrew, who's eyes still looked red and puffy from all the crying he'd done earlier. Eleena and Desoto hung back, looking awkward.

 

“You're- um, friends are welcome to stay the night,” Michael said, looking over the crowd of them with this light frown that just seemed to live on his face. “Are you… going to need rides home in the morning?”

 

“Um, I think we can like, hop over there,” Cameron said. He didn't look forward to driving for hours back to his parents house; from the map he'd seen on Jamie's digivice they lived all the way across the city. “You know. With our powers.”

 

In fact, he found that he wasn't looking forward to going home at all. It wasn't like he didn't want to see his parents again, but it would be… weird, leaving his friends behind, after they'd been through so much together.

 

They were practically his new family, by this point.

 

“Um,” Junko interrupted his thoughts. “Thank you, but us- we'll be going back to the Digital world tonight. We need… time to think, to talk.”

 

Megan nodded. “I can understand that. Is there some way you can send us messages, though? We should get back in touch soon.”

 

Junko nodded. “We can use our Digivices. We'll let you know when we can see you again.”

 

The four of them pulled out their digivices, and Cameron couldn't quite stifle a laugh at the look on Michael and Angela's faces when they blipped out of existence like something out of Star Trek.

 

The rest of them trooped inside. “Let's just sleep down here,” Megan said, gesturing around the living room. “It'll be like a sleepover!” Her enthusiasm sounded rusty; Cameron had never seen her looking so drained before. There were dark circles under her eyes and wisps of hair were pulling out from her usually immaculate braid.

 

“Dibs on the couch,” Eleena said, and flopped immediately down onto it with a creak of old springs. Cameron was pretty sure she was asleep before she even touched down, Kunimon curled up next to her head.

 

Megan and her folks fetched some sleeping bags and blankets from upstairs. Andrew and Desoto were the first to bed down, cuddled up next to each other, and Megan quickly glommed onto her twin, trying to comfort him even in sleep.

 

Cameron felt weirdly jealous at the sight. He wished he could do something to comfort Andrew as well; he had almost been as devastated as his digimon after the… loss they had suffered.

 

But Cameron figured he would want to be close to his sister more than anything right now. He couldn't intrude on that.

 

So he laid down behind Desoto, wrapping his arms loosely around the other boy's body, smiling when he made a cute noise and pressed his cheek against Andrew's.

 

His eyes closed and he was out before Andrew and Megan's folks even turned the lights off for them.

 

~

 

The next morning, they ate dry cereal and toast at the Paul's kitchen table, and a gloomy silence hung over the room. Desoto could feel an exhaustion headache starting to throb in the recesses of his skull.

 

Their digimon had all evolved back to in-training forms that morning, (except for Zurimon, who was hiding in the pocket of Andrew's oversized hoodie and refusing to talk.) Desoto kept hand-feeding Tokomon pieces of bread with liberal amounts of jam on them, careful of his intimidating teeth.

 

Andrew had been almost as quiet as his Digimon all morning, and hadn't smiled once. Everyone was being quiet, as a matter of fact. Megan had made a few attempts at her usual wacky humor to cheer everyone up, but nobody seemed to be in the mood.

 

The twins' mom was standing in the corner of the kitchen and nursing a coffee, watching the kids clustered around the table like she still wasn't entirely sure if she could trust them or not. Their father had disappeared somewhere after making sure they all had something to eat.

 

Desoto had been pretty surprised to meet Megan and Andrew's parents; they were both so _serious_. He couldn't understand how they had produced such sweet, personable kids. The physical resemblance was strong though; Megan had her father's bright red hair, and Andrew basically looked like a young, boyish version of his mother. And they both had their mothers big, expressive brown eyes.

 

“So, is everyone excited to be going home today?” Megan asked, still forcing cheeriness.

 

Cameron grunted. “I'm probably grounded by now or something. And I'm really not looking forward to school.”

 

“I bet not. Thank god we're homeschooled,” Andrew muttered, his chin in his hands.

 

“Screw you,” Cameron shot back dully.

 

Eleena stared off into the middle distance, allowing Yaamon to devour her uneaten toast, and said nothing.

 

Desoto looked down. He had tried to avoid thinking about going home; he finally had _friends_ again, and he dreaded the thought of leaving them behind. He wanted to see his family, of course,  
(he was DYING to see his family), but would he really get to see these guys again? Would they manage to stay close or would they drift apart when they weren't living together anymore?

 

Would they… would they still want to be his friend, now that their adventure was over?

 

“Hey, De?” Megan looked over at him, concerned. “What's wrong?”

 

“Wh-nothing, nothing,” Desoto insisted. He didn't want to worry them.

 

But suddenly, everyone was staring at him.

 

“What?” he asked, unnerved.

 

“You're crying,” Andrew pointed out.

 

Desoto reached up to his cheeks, and was shocked when his fingers came away wet. “Oh- I guess I am.” Just like that, he felt his throat tighten and his face flush.

 

_Oh no_ , he thought.  _Oh no, I didn't want to break down like this!_

 

He hastily wiped at the tears, but before he could react, everyone scrambled up out of their chairs and came crowding around him.

 

Megan hugged him so tightly it was hard to breathe. “Please, don't cry! Whatever we did we're sorry, I promise!”

 

“Can you _please_ stop speaking for us all the time?” Eleena murmured, but she actually gave Desoto a look that seemed to translate into sympathy.

 

“Oh, I'm not- I just- I-I'm worried about what- what will happen when I leave,” Desoto said, leaning into Megan's embrace, trying not to get tears and snot all over her shirt. “I just… when will I get to see you again?”

 

“Like, in a few days?” Cameron said, rubbing a hand up and down his back. “You live in Cedar Rapids, right?”

 

“Uh-huh,” Desoto said.

 

Cameron smiled at him. “Well, I'll have to settle in with my folks but as soon as I can I'll come visit.”

 

“And we can all communicate with our Digivices, right?” Megan said. “We'll stay in touch, I promise.”

 

“Yeah, I mean, it's not like we're going to just go our separate ways and never talk again,” Andrew said, ruffling Desoto's hair. “We're friends now, right?”

 

Desoto smiled, feeling his spirits lift a little. “Yeah,” he said, and wiped his nose with the back of his hand. “We're friends.”

 

“Group hug!” Cameron announced, and sort of mosh-shoved into him. “Come on Eleena, bring it in.”

 

Eleena scoffed, but she did walk over and put a single finger on Desoto's head. “There, I'm contributing.”

 

Desoto laughed as he was crushed and jostled by his overenthusiastic friends. The last of his doubts washed away in that moment; Andrew was right. Even if he had to go home now, it wasn't going to be forever.

 

He'd see them all again. Everything would be ok.

  
~

 

After the other Chosen Children and digimon left, the house seemed very quiet.

 

Andrew wandered around for a while, feeling displaced. After spending so much time away, he could hardly believe he was actually, finally back home.

 

His parents were talking in the kitchen, all quiet and serious. He avoided them, a little afraid that they would suddenly change their minds and insist that he and Megan send their digimon away or something.

 

Megan and Agumon had gone back to sleep on the living room couch. They both looked exhausted, so he let them be, heading for the stairway.

 

Nooks greeted him with a chirp in the upstairs hallway, her tail flagged up. He leaned down to scritch her behind the ears, marveling at the feel of her fur under his fingers.

 

“Now I'm kinda weirded out that you can't talk to me,” he said, chuckling.

 

“Myah,” she replied, rubbing up against his legs. He couldn't really tell if she was happy to see him or not.

 

She followed him down the hall and into his room when he opened the door. He walked in and looked around, dazed; it was exactly the way he'd left it all that time ago, (oh god, how long had it been? Had they been gone an entire month?) and everything was covered in dust.

 

_They must have stayed out of our rooms,_ he thought.  _It was probably painful for them to be up here._

 

He walked forward slowly, feeling like he was in a museum or something, like he shouldn't touch anything. Then he realized that was dumb, and flopped down on his bed, stirring up a cloud of dust. He grabbed a pillow and hugged it to his chest, rolling onto his back to stare up at the ceiling.

 

What was he supposed to do now? For the past… _however_ long it had been, he'd been completely goal focused; walk up this mountain, fight these monsters, save the world, don't die… now that it was all over, he felt all empty inside.

 

He was worried about his parents. What if they decided they didn't want Megan and him to be around their digimon anymore? What if they made them turn over their digivice, send Agumon and lopmon back to the digital world?

 

What would he do if-

 

He sat bolt upright, his eyes snapping open wide.

 

_Lopmon._ Where was he?!

 

He scrambled out of bed, panic flooding his brain. He couldn't  _believe_ he'd lost track of Lopmon! They'd hardly been apart in all this time, and now that he noticed it, Lopmon's absence at his side felt almost unnatural.

 

He raced downstairs and came to a crashing halt at the head of the couch. “MEGAN!” he shouted.

 

“GWAH!” she flailed up, knocking Agumon off her stomach. “Jesus, Andrew!”

 

“I can't find Lopmon,” he said desperately. “Have you seen him?!”

 

She stared up at him, blinking slowly. Then she sighed and raised a hand up to wipe the sleep from her eyes. “Andrew, he's been through a lot. He probably needs some alone time.”

 

“I'm worried about him,” Andrew said. “Right now- he's not stable. I'm scared he's gonna do something to hurt himself.”

 

Megan's mouth twisted, “...You can track him with your digivice. Go make sure he's ok, but- give him some space, alright?”

 

“Thank you,” Anrew said fervently, pulling out his digivice.

 

Megan showed him how to switch it over to a little compass view that pointed in the direction of his digimon partner, then lazily waved him off as she sunk back onto the couch, Agumon crawling up behind her, grumbling and shoving his head under a cushion.

 

Andrew took off, following the compass needle. He walked through the kitchen, passing his parents who gave him worried looks, but he ignored them for the moment.

 

His digivice led him down the back hall and out the door, then swiveled so fast to the left that he almost lost his balance.

 

Lopmon was sitting right beside the small back porch, crouched down in a clump of weeds next to some old boots and their rusty, broken down childhood wagon. His ears were drooping morosely over his face, and his arms were crossed tight over his chest.

 

Andrew stopped in front of him, dismayed. It was a relief to find him out here, unharmed, but he was so obviously miserable. Megan had told him to give Lopmon his space, but… he couldn't stand to just _leave_ him out here like this.

 

So he sat down on the edge of the deck and folded his arms in his lap. “Lopmon, please. Talk to me.”

 

“Go away,” Lopmon mumbled, not looking up at him.

 

“I… it's hard, I know,” Andrew said, rubbing at the back of his neck. “I- I lost someone very close to me last year. I know how much it hurts. And I just- I want you to know I'm _here_ for you, ok?”

 

Lopmon stiffened. Very slowly, he raised his head, not making eye contact with Andrew. “...You know how I _feel_?”

 

“I- I mean-” Andrew started, flustered, but Lopmon cut him off.

 

“How can you possible know how I feel?!” He got to his feet, glaring up at Andrew now. His little hands were clenched into fists at his side, trembling with anger. “You didn't know Terriermon! None of you did! None of you cared about him like I did!”

 

“Lopmon, I have a twin too!” Andrew protested. “Losing her- just _thinking_ about it hurts.”

 

“Yeah, well, when she's dead, maybe we can talk,” Lopmon snarled.

 

“I'm trying to help you!” Andrew insisted. He reached out for Lopmon, trying to touch him, connect with him, but he pulled out of reach. “I'm worried about you! I- I don't want you to get hurt.”

 

“You mean you want me to shut up and stop grieving!” The hair on Lopmon's back began to raise up, and for a moment, Andrew was honestly afraid he'd attack him. “ _You_ don't want to deal with my pain! Well guess what; even if I tamp it down and pretend I'm fine, it's still gonna be there! I still have to deal with it!”

 

“That's not what I'm saying!” Andrew threw his hands up in the air in frustration. “I'm trying to _help_ you!”

 

“Oh yeah? Well then LEAVE ME ALONE!” Lopmon yelled, and went running down the yard towards the woods.

 

“Lopmon!” Andrew yelled, taking a step, meaning to chase after him- then stopped.

 

_I- I just keep hurting him,_ he thought, clenching a hand  against  his chest.  _Megan was right; I should have left him alone._

 

He sat down on the deck, a long sigh leaving him in a rush. He couldn't do anything. He couldn't do _anything_ to help Lopmon.

 

He dropped his head into his arms and started to cry.


	28. Episode 28- Closure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- mentions of physical and emotional child abuse.

CHAPTER 28 - Closure

 

Impmon woke up in the middle of the night, disoriented and anxious; it felt like something was missing.

 

He sat up in his bedroll, looking around sleepily, and after a moment, he realized that Eleena wasn't beside him.

 

Her absence didn't immediately panic him; she was a restless sleeper, and often got up in the middle of the night to wander around.

 

But he knew he wouldn't be able to get back to sleep until he figured out where she'd gotten to, so with a sigh, he slipped out out of his bedroll and started looking around.

 

He found her sitting on a nearby hill that overlooked the sea. The moon was almost full and the light caught in her silvery hair, giving it an ethereal glow.

 

Impmon trudged over to her, grumbling under his breath. “You realize that hair of yours is going to attract every predator in a five-mile radius, right?”

 

“If anything attacks us, I'll just make you kick its ass,” she mumbled back, not turning to look at him.

 

He snorted, then sat down beside her and followed her gaze. The sea looked really pretty in the moonlight.

 

They had been traveling around the Digital world for almost two weeks now. After they got back, Eleena had told him she needed some time away from the other Chosen Children, and he hadn't felt inclined to disagree with her.

 

At first, they had returned to the flower-fields where the Glitch had been trapped. The wrecked generator and the torn up grass in a full mile's radius stood as evidence of the massive fight between it and Vega- er, Jaime.

 

They hadn't stayed there for long; Eleena had started walking west along the coast, and Impmon had followed her.

 

He hadn't asked her where she was going or what she intended to do; honestly, he felt sort of lost now that the Glitch was gone, and it was nice to just follow her and not worry about anything else.

 

She kept them moving, never staying in one place for more than a day. She didn't talk much; she did a lot of sitting around and staring at the scenery, or she helped him scavenge for food.

 

By now, Impmon was starting to get worried about her. Half the time she walked around with this dazed expression, like she didn't really understand where she was.

 

He was starting to get the impression that she was as lost as he was.

 

(Not that he'd ever admit that he was worried to her face. He had _some_ standards.)

 

“...Did you have a bad dream?” he finally asked, rubbing his arms. It was cold out here tonight.

 

She had them a lot. Almost every night he could hear her moaning and shifting in her sleep, or she would wake up with a strangled yell.

 

He never knew how to help except to sit by her like he was doing now, and she seemed to take some comfort from his presence.

 

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I'm just… I'm just thinking.”

 

Impmon nodded, and the silence resumed. The two of them didn't talk that much, to be honest; they bickered and joked with each other sometimes, but most of the time they spent just- being quiet together.

 

It seemed like a weird thing for friends to do, but then again, Impmon had never had friends before. And it was kinda nice.

 

Suddenly, Eleena sat up and broke the silence. “I want to go back to Earth.”

 

Impmon blinked. “Really?”

 

She'd said before that she had nothing on Earth she wanted to return to. She'd seemed pretty determined about it, at the time.

 

“Not permanently,” she said. “There's just… something I need to do.”

 

“...Well, what are you waiting for?” Impmon said. “You've already woken me up. Might as well haul me into another dimension while we're at it, it's not like I need to sleep or anything.”

 

She snorted. “Yeah, why not? Might as well get it over with.”

 

Fishing around in her pocket, she took out her digivice and held it out in front of her. She closed her eyes, and Impmon felt the familiar, disorienting sensation of being pulled out of one world into another.

 

Seconds later he was spat out onto a soft, carpeted floor. He got up on his hands and knees. “Ugh, this always makes me nauseous...” he grumbled.

 

Eleena shushed him, scrambling up on her ridiculously long legs and staring around her like she was expecting something to leap out of the shadows and attack them. “I don't want to wake anyone up.”

 

Impmon looked around curiously. It looked a little bit like the other human house he'd been in, all blocky and weird. This place was a lot cleaner though, less random stuff piled up in the corners.

 

 _Humans have no sense of taste_ he thought, poking at a soft, long chair that was positioned across the room from a wide TV screen.

 

Eleena was already padding out of the room, and he hurried to keep up with her. It wasn't like he was _nervous_ to be in a strange human's house at night, but… he just didn't really want to be left alone in one for long.

 

The next room was smaller, squarer, and smelled like food, with all sorts of strange gadgets built into the walls. And a large round table in the center.

 

Eleena walked around the circumference of it, running her hands across various surfaces, with this look on her face like she knew she was dreaming but couldn't figure out how to wake up.

 

She stopped, frowning. “Something's wrong.”

 

Impmon bristled. “Should I evolve?”

 

Eleena shook her head, motioning for him to calm down. “No, it's just..” she trailed off, and walked over to the table, examining at the assortment of papers piled up on in.

 

Impmon struggled up onto a chair so he could see what she was looking at. There were thick bundles of grey and black paper, lots of letters, and pictures all scattered across the wooden surface.

 

He picked one up; it was a picture of a much smaller, rounder-faced Eleena. She was standing next to a tall human and grinning widely.

 

He'd never seen her smile like that in real life; it looked weird. He stared at the picture for a long moment, transfixed. Then he turned to her, smirking. “Hey look, it's you before you evolved. Baby form Eleena!”

 

She rolled her eyes at him. “Shut up.”

 

She kept sorting through the papers on the table, like she was looking for something specific. “Damn, she's still looking for me,” she said absently, tossing aside one of the black-and-white bundles.

 

Finally, she picked up an envelope, and stared at it. Impmon cocked his head to one side to read the words 'Divorce Procedures' printed on the front.

 

“Holy shit,” Eleena whispered. “She actually did it. I thought I'd have to make you throw him out of the house by force.”

 

“Hey, don't make me do your dirty work,” Impmon protested, but he stopped short when he realized Eleena's shoulders were shaking.

 

He panicked as her head dropped forward; was she crying? Oh god, he didn't know what to do if she was crying.

 

But as he reached for her shoulder, not sure if he needed to comfort her or, like, slap her or something, her hair slid out of the way to reveal the quivering, puffy smile on her face.

 

She was _laughing_. Quietly, but almost hysterically. She collapsed into a chair, her whole body shaking with laughter, clutching at her stomach from the force of it.

 

Impmon laughed along awkwardly. “Um… are you ok? You didn't eat any weird plants before we got here, did you?

 

Eleena flopped back in her chair, her hair hanging down from her head like a sheet. She sighed, still grinning. “I'm… well. Not ok. But I'm not...”

 

She straightened up, and looked over at him with a troubled expression, her laughter drying up. “I don't know how I feel about this,” she whispered.

 

Impmon rubbed his forehead. “Look, I'm bad at this. I- I don't know what to say to make it all better. But you-you can tell me what's going on. If you think it would help.” He looked away, blushing. “Or whatever.”

 

She let out a long breath through her nose. “… I used to live here with my- do Digimon have parents? Well, my mom and step-dad, they took care of me.”

 

Impmon looked down at the picture. “Is this one of them?” He pointed at the tall human, and he thought that it did sort of look like Eleena. The lines around its face were similar.

 

“Yeah, that's my mom” She took the picture out of his fingers and stared at it for a long moment. Her eyes were tired.

 

She leaned forwards, pillowing her head on her arms. “She got married to my step-dad when I was ten. He was a jerk. He- well, he hurt me. And my mom… didn't stop him.

 

She took in a deep, shaking breath, and continued, “Well, I mean, I can hardly blame her- he'd hurt her too, when she tried to intervene. But still. She could have done _something_.”

 

Impmon had never had anyone to take care of him when he was 'little'. He'd been a wild egg, he'd had to learn how to take care of himself. Eleena's story was almost making him think he'd been lucky. “Why didn't you just leave?” he asked.

 

“I should have,” Eleena said. “But, well… you stayed with the Glitch because you thought it would give you power, right? I think people cling when they're hurting, to whatever they can, because they feel like if they let go… they're just gonna disappear.”

 

She stared off into the middle distance, quiet for a long time.

 

Hesitantly, Impmon reached out again. He twirled a strand of her long hair around his finger, tugging on it idly. “...You're still here, though. We both are.”

 

She looked at him, considering. Then she nodded. “Yeah. That's why I came back. I… well, I just wanted to tie up the loose ends. So I don't have to come here ever again.”

 

She stood up, and the hair slid off Impmon's finger. Reaching into her pocket, she drew out an envelope, just like the many others scattered across the table.

 

She cleared a space and set it down. “She dumped my step-father, so I don't have to worry about her anymore. She'll take care of herself, and this letter is to let her know that I'm ok. We can both move on with our lives.”

 

She looked over at the doorway; not the one they'd come through, but one leading to a dark hallway. There was a strange look on her face; was it anger? Or longing?

 

Whatever it was, Impmon didn't think she should stay here any longer. He didn't think it was good for her.

 

He took her hand. “C'mon,” he said. “Let's get out of here before she wakes up.”

 

Eleena took in a deep breath, and nodded, squeezing his hand. “Yeah.”

 

~

 

As they stepped out onto the grass of the front lawn, Eleena felt like she should be happier. It was like a huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders, but instead of feeling free, she felt… untethered. Helpless.

 

 _Homeless_. God.

 

It was giving her the heeby-jeebies, being so close to her old life, but knowing she couldn't- _didn't have to_ \- go back.

 

She felt giddy. She felt sick. She… didn't know how she felt.

 

“It seems...” Impmon started, then paused, uncertain.

 

Eleena looked down at him and raised an eyebrow. “It seems like what?”

 

“Seems like a shame you can't live here,” he said, shrugging. “I mean- not _here_ here, obviously these humans are unsuitable. But don't you want to live on Earth? I mean, don't you want to be with your kind?”

 

“Don't need 'em,” Eleena said shortly. “I'm going to live in the Digital world from now on, and you're going to be my family. That's all I need. Besides,” she rolled her eyes, “If I need any human contact, I'm sure the other Chosen Children will be bugging me before-”

 

“I- I'm you're family?” Impmon cut her off, his voice high and vulnerable.

 

She looked down at him in alarm to see his eyes were wide, and one shaking, gloved hand was covering his mouth. She could swear she saw tears in his eyes, sparkling in the moonlight like something from a cheesy movie.

 

She recoiled, panicking for a moment; her first instinct was to say something snarky, deflect him. She didn't want to deal with _emotions_ right now.

 

But then- _no,_ she thought, _no, I need to deal with this._ _He deserves that much from me._

 

She took a deep breath, and knelt down in front of him. “Ok, listen closely, because I'm literally never going to say this again. I love you, Impmon. You're my partner, and I never want to leave your side. You're my family. Got it?”

 

To her shock, he grabbed her around the neck, his little arms wrapping around and squeezing hard. “ _I love you too_ ,” he choked out, and she felt tears dripping onto her collarbone.

 

He pulled off before she could even get her hand up to comfortingly pat him on the back. “So what,” he said, his voice carefully casual, trying to act casual like he wasn't frantically drying his eyes. “Are we gonna go back now, or are we gonna stand out here being soppy all night?!”

 

Eleena straightened up. “Actually… there's one more thing I want to do.” He groaned loudly, but she ignored his dramatics. “Evolve to your ultimate form; I wanna ride on your back while you fly around.”

 

He raised an eyebrow at her. “What- here? Now?”

 

“Yup. Can't you even manage that?” She challenged, putting her hands on her hips.

 

He sighed, but drew himself up to his full height. In a brief flash of light, Beezlemon was standing in front of her, his arms folded grouchily. “You got to ride with me when we fought the Glitch,” he grumbled, even as he helped her clamber onto his back.

 

“Yeah, but I couldn't properly enjoy it because he were terrified for our lives,” she shot back, wrapping her arms around his neck and hooking her legs over his wings. She swallowed when he leaned forward slightly, nervous despite herself.

 

“Well… don't think I'm gonna make this an easy ride,” he said mischievously, then without warning, he shot up into the air so fast Eleena couldn't stop herself from shrieking.

 

Her nerves got left behind as they climbed dizzyingly up into the sky. His wings snapped out, buoying them up, and they were soaring above the sparse cloud-cover, looking down on the world like it was a plastic playset.

 

A wild laugh bubbled up out of her chest. “WHOO!” she yelled, throwing her arms out in exhilaration. “HELL YEAH!”

 

“Hey, don't throw off my balance!” Beezlemon complained, but she could hear the smile in his voice. “Hold on!” he called, and started to dive.

 

She held on with all her might, and as they raced through the air, she realized that she didn't feel untethered anymore. When she was holding onto her digimon partner, she felt incredibly, solidly grounded.

 

And when they were flying… yes, she really did feel free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the late update, folks; I was at a con all weekend and overestimated my ability to stay awake by Sunday evening. Only two more chapters to go!


	29. Episode 29- Slumber Party

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warnings- a little awkwardness over a genderfluid character explaining her identity to her well meaning- but not INCREDIBLY tactful- friend.

“Breakfast is ready!” Megan's dad called up the stairs.

 

“COMING!” she yelled back, and tried to struggle into her jeans a little quicker. “I think I had a growth spurt while we were in the digital world, none of my clothes fit right anymore.”

 

“Is that how humans evolve?” Agumon asked, sitting on her bed as he watched her get dressed, kicking his legs back and forth.

 

Megan chuckled, zipping herself up. “Sort of. But if I evolved, I'd like to think I'd get at least three feet taller and have a cool new weapon.”

 

Suddenly curious, she walked over to the mirror to examine herself. Her skin was a little tanner, she thought, than it had been before her adventure. Her hair was probably longer, but that was hard to tell as it grew. Otherwise, she looked exactly the same as she had before she was sucked into the Digital World almost two months ago.

 

She _felt_ different. She felt like she'd spent an entire lifetime away from home, growing and changing. It was surreal that after everything that had happened… her life just went back to normal once she returned to Earth.

 

Well. It was a slightly different normal than before.

 

She patted herself down, making sure she was all put-together and presentable. “Ok, let's get down there!” she said to Agumon, and the two of them raced out of the room and pounded down the stairs.

 

She caught herself on the bannister and spun into the dining room, which was filled with the delicious smell of pancakes. “Morning, Dad!”

 

“Morning honey,” he said, spooning sausages out of a skillet and into a large serving bowl. “Agumon, I can _see_ you sneaking extra pancakes. Leave enough for everyone, ok?”

 

Agumon sheepishly put back about five pancakes. “Sorry, Dad,” he said.

 

Megan choked back a giggle at the look on her father's face at being called 'dad' by an orange dinosaur from another world. Agumon had settled right into the family, much to the bewilderment of her parents.

 

She took her place at the table and started filling up her own plate. “Mom already left for work?” she asked.

 

“Yeah, she has meetings all morning,” he said, untying his apron and hanging it up. “Did you see Andrew upstairs?”

 

Megan shrugged, piling sausages onto her plate. “He's probably still sleeping. Should I go wake him up?”

 

Her dad narrowed his eyes at her. “Does that translate to either 'scream in his ear' or 'dump water over his head'?”

 

“Maybe; 'jump up and down on top of him until he gets up' is another option,” Megan said sweetly.

 

“No need,” Andrew's voice came from the doorway, and Megan turned to see him rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Lopmon trailing along behind him. “I'm awake, but at what cost?”

 

“Pancakes,” Megan replied. “Good morning to you too, Rip Van Winkle.”

 

He grumbled something at her as he sat down at the table, groping for food without really looking.

 

Megan stuffed a forkful of pancakes into her mouth and chewed contentedly. _He'll wake up as soon as he puts his hand in the eggs or something,_ she thought.

 

“Thanks for the food Mr. Paul,” Lopmon said quietly, delicately picking apart a single pancake with nothing on it.

 

“Yesh, shanks!” Agumon parroted, his mouth full.

 

“Table manners,” Megan reminded her digimon, prodding him between the shoulder blades. “Also, not choking.”

 

She shot a concerned glance at Lopmon as Agumon attempted to swallow. He stared off into the middle distance as he ate, as quiet as usual.

 

She knew it was none of her business, but she was worried about him.

 

It had been roughly three weeks since they left the Digital World and defeated the Glitch. In that time, they had rested, recovered; Megan and Andrew's parents had wanted them close, so they had spent several days just sitting around and watching TV together, too exhausted and heartsick to manage anything more strenuous.

 

Agumon had taken to life in the human world like a duck to water. He loved their house, their food, everything; he loved their cat even after she scratched his poor face to shreds the first time they met, terrified of the strange orange monster shoving its snout in her face.

 

And he ADORED their parents, following Megan's example in calling them 'Mom' and 'Dad and asking them constant questions about the human world. They had been suspicious of him at first, but he was good at winning people over, and now they seemed resigned to the addition of a loud, non-human child to their family.

 

Megan was settling back in easier than she thought she would. She'd been running a lot ever since they got back, and she was going back to her martial arts and dance classes soon. She was glad things were a little more peaceful now, but she missed the constant physical demands of traveling around the Digital World. She didn't want to get out of shape.

 

Andrew was quiet, but he seemed a little less depressed than before. He actually came outside with her sometimes, and he'd been drawing furiously ever since they got back. He'd shown her some of the stuff he'd finished, and a lot of it featured their digimon and various scenes from their travels.

 

So they were all recovering pretty well. But Lopmon… he didn't talk. He barely ate. She could see how hard he's taken the loss of his twin, and he didn't know if he was getting much better.

 

She'd asked Andrew about it, and he just shrugged, looking frustrated. “He apologized for snapping at me, but he hasn't talked about it ever since. Honestly, I'd prefer him to be angry at me than just… moping like this.”

 

“He reminds me of you,” she'd said, and he'd laughed sadly.

 

“I think us being so similar is part of the problem,” he'd replied.

 

It wasn't an easy situation. She wanted to _do_ something, wanted to help them- but she got the feeling that if she butted in where she wasn't wanted, it would only make things worse.

 

Megan shook her head and re-focused her concentration on her food- but she hadn't even swallowed her next bite before a high-pitched beeping filled the room.

 

She looked around in confusion. “Um, Dad, is that your phone?”

 

He shook his head, puzzled. “I think it's you.”

 

Megan patted herself down; had she left a timer in her pocket or something? But as soon as her fingers brushed over the lump in her pocket, it dawned on her.

 

She pulled out her digivice. The little screen display told her _Incoming call from Junko._ _Accept_ _N/Y?_ Feeling kinda stupid, and suddenly excited, she pressed Y.

 

The voice came through a little staticky but clear enough. “Hey, Megan? Are you there?” There was no trace of an accent in her voice this time; Megan figured that the digivices must directly translate different human languages, like the rest of the Digital World did automatically.

 

“Hey, Junko!” Megan responded, grinning. “How are you guys doing?”

 

“We're good,” Junko responded. “How about you?”

 

“Good! Kind of bored now that all the saving-the-world stuff is out of the way.”

 

Junko laughed. “Don't worry, you'll eventually come to appreciate the peace and quiet in between world-ending disasters. Anyway, I just called to ask if you two are free this weekend.

 

Megan blinked, looking up at Andrew questioningly. “I think? I should be, anyway.”

 

“I don't have plans,” Andrew said.

 

She rolled her eyes. “You never do. Yeah, I think we're free, what's up? Is there some kinda trouble in the Digital World?”

 

“Oh no, not at all,” Junko said. “Things are actually much more settled now. No, it's just- we barely got to meet you guys- you new Chosen Children- and it wasn't under the… most ideal circumstances. So we were thinking of organizing a… a meet-up, I guess, so we can all get to know each other better.”

 

Megan gasped. “A party!”

 

“Well, sort of,” Junko said. “I thought we could all spend the weekend together at the base, and maybe compare our skill sets, do some team-building exercises-”

 

“So a slumber party!” Megan jumped out of her chair in excitement. “Yes, yes, of course we'll come!”

 

“That sounds amazing!” Agumon crowed in agreement.

 

“Have you contacted the others?” Andrew asked, less visibly excited than Megan but with brighter eyes than she'd seen him with lately.

 

“Yeah, they're all coming,” Junko assured him.

 

This was perfect. Megan was stoked to see her friends again and get to know the old Chosen Children better, and it would probably be good for _all_ of them to regroup and spent some more time in the Digital World, now that everything had calmed down.

 

“Wait, wait.” Their dad stood up, frowning slightly. “You can't just leave without permission.”

 

“Ohhh, right,” Megan said. “Sorry, I forgot that we have to listen to our parents again.”

 

“So- can we go?” Andrew asked.

 

Their dad crossed his arms, and Megan got a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. “I don't know… will you be in any danger?”

 

“Naww, ever since we defeated the Glitch, we're probably the most powerful things there,” Megan said proudly.

 

Junk made a little uneasy noise. “Not to butt in, but I know from experience that's not a safe assumption.”

 

Megan sighed. “Thanks, Junko, that's helping _so much_ with convincing our parents to ever let us leave the house again.”

 

“Sorry. But, Mr Paul,” Junko's voice rose as she addressed their father, “You don't need to worry about your children. They are a part of the Digital World now, and I give you my word that my friends and I will protect them.”

 

“Hey! We don't need protecting!” Agumon insisted.

 

Andrew grimaced. “Let's face it, we probably do.”

 

“Besides, it's just a party, dad,” Megan pointed out. “We're not gonna be fighting anything.”

 

Their dad looked over at them for a long moment, his expression inscrutable. Megan sat back down and set her digivice on the table, trying not to fidget anxiously.

 

Finally, his shoulders relaxed. “Well, I'm not saying anything for sure until I've talked to your mother- but I don't think there should be any problem.”

 

“Whoo!” Megan yelled, throwing her hands up in jubilation.

 

“Ouch!” Andrew yelped as she accidentally slapped him in the face.

 

“Just...” Their dad paused for a moment, then ran a hand over his face. “...Just come _back_ this time, alright?”

 

Oh. Well, that was… painful.

 

Megan got hurriedly to her feet, and ran over to give him a hug. “We will, I promise,” she said, pressing her face into his chest.

 

He grunted slightly and patted her head.

 

“So, what do you think, Lopmon”?” Andrew asked. “...Do you want to come with us?”

 

Megan looked up to see her brother looking at his digimon with an air of hesitance, like he was afraid of what Lopmon might say in reply.

 

Lopmon stared down at his plate for a long, quiet moment. For a little while, Megan was worried that he was ignoring them.

 

But then he looked up, and wonder of wonders, actually smiled. “Yeah,” he said, quiet but earnest. “Yeah. I wanna come.”

 

Megan grinned. This was going to be _brilliant_.

 

~

 

Cameron sat up, his eyes widening at the sound of the doorbell. “I'VE GOT IT!” he hollered, grabbing up the backpack Tsunomon was hiding in. Then he pounded out of his room and raced down the hall towards the front door.

 

“Stop running in the house!” his mom called to him from the kitchen.

 

He ignored her, screeching to a halt at the front door and yanking it open. On the other side, Desoto was standing on the porch, his hand raised in greeting and a cheerful, crooked smile on his face.

 

“Hey Cammie! How- OOF!” he gasped out as Cameron plowed into him, wrapping him up in a tight bearhug.

 

“It's so good to see you!” Cameron exclaimed, vigorously ruffling his hair.

 

“Dude,” Desoto huffed, wheezing a little as Cameorn released him. “I saw you like, three days ago.”

 

“I can't help it, I'm excited!” Cameron said, bouncing up and down on his heels. “C'mon, let's go before-”

 

“Cameron Jacob McNamara,” a stern voice said over his shoulder. “Were you _really_ planning to leave the house without letting me know where you're going?”

 

Cameron rolled his eyes. “Mooommm, you _know_ where I'm going, I told you _ages_ ago that I'm sleeping over at De's house.”

 

“I still expect you to say goodbye,” she said, fixing him with a scowl. Her face softened when she turned to the other boy standing on the front porch. “Hello, Desoto, dear.”

 

“Hi Mrs. McNamara,” Desoto said brightly.

 

“Tell your parents hi for me,” she said. “Cameron, make sure to thank them for letting you stay over.”

 

“Yeah, sure,” Cameron said. “Ok, goodbye. Desoto, let's go and-”

 

“Wait one minute,” his mom said, and roped him on for a one-armed hug and a kiss on the cheek.

 

“Mom!” he squawked, pulling himself free. “Ok, seriously De, let's get out of here.”

 

“Bye Mrs. McNamara,” Desoto said, obviously holding back laughter.

 

She waved at them as Cameron grabbed Desoto by the arm and hauled him down the street before he could be embarrassed any further.

 

“Your mom is nice,” Desoto said as they walked down the street together.

 

Cameron snorted derisively. “She's a busybody. I wish she'd stop _fussing_ over me all the time.”

 

“She's just worried about you,” said Desoto. “I think we all scared our parents half to death when we went missing for a month.”

 

Cameron sighed, looking down. “Yeah...”

 

It had been… _painful_ to see the frantic relief on his mother's face when he finally made it home. She'd hugged him for about fifteen minutes, practically _wailing,_ her hands trembling as she clutched at him.

 

He'd cried, too. Even his _dad_ had teared up, which was… it was kind of horrifying to even know that was _possible_.

 

It should have been nice, and it was, sort of- it was a relief to see them again. But it was scary, too, to feel the intensity of their emotions towards him. There was something cloying and desperate about it that made Cameron feel sick inside.

 

Even now, the way they watched him when they thought her wasn't looking- like they were scared he was going to disappear. He didn't know how he was supposed to handle that.

 

“Even so, she doesn't have to go kissing me in the middle of the street,” he grouched, shoving his hands into his pockets.

 

Desoto laughed. “Hey, I never asked- what did you tell them? Y'know, what excuse did you give them for being gone for so long?”

 

“I just told them I ran away,” Cameron said. “I thought about saying I was kidnapped, but I didn't want to get the police involved. But now I have to see a therapist and they think I'm 'troubled' or something, so that's fun.”

 

“I'm sorry about that, man,” Desoto said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. “I guess I have it pretty easy.”

 

He did, comparatively; Cameron had hardly believed him when he said he just told his family the truth about what happened, but apparently it had all worked out.

 

“I mean, I already told them _one_ life-shattering secret and the world didn't end, so I figure they trust me pretty well at this point,” he'd said with a laugh.

 

Presently, Cameron patted him on the back. “Don't worry about it, I'm glad you can talk to your folks about this stuff. It's probably a lot more convenient not to have to hide Patamon at home, too.”

 

“It really is,” Desoto said. “My little sister _adores_ them, and keeps asking me when _she_ can get her own digimon.”

 

Cameron laughed. “Oh, geez. I bet your parents are thrilled about that.”

 

“Well, Patamon makes a really good babysitter, so they've actually warmed up to them,” Desoto said. “Speaking of our digimon, is this a good spot?”

 

They stopped and looked around. They had reached a bend in the road where there was a gap in between houses, and some good tree-cover along the dead-end alley the gap created.

 

“Yeah, this should do,” Cameron said.

 

The two of them walked down the alley until they were definitely out of sight of the houses along the other side of the street. Cameron knelt in the dirt and opened his backpack, allowing Tsunamon to squirm out.

 

“Pwahhh! Thank god, I was suffocating in there!” he exclaimed, bouncing out onto the ground.

 

“At least you don't have wing to get squished,” Patamon said, crawling out of Desoto's bag.

 

Desoto smiled ruefully. “Sorry guys. But we can go now, and you can be out all weekend!”

 

“Whoohoo!” Tsunomon crowed.

 

Cameron felt guilty; he knew it was hard for his digimon to stay in his in-training form and hide all the time at home. This would be a nice break for the both of them.

 

The boys each took out their digivices and closed their eyes, concentrating. In a flash of light, they were no longer sitting in a dirty, overgrown alleyway, but on a grassy cliff-side, next to a very familiar low-slung building.

 

There were wooden tables set outside of the temple, and someone had gone to the trouble of hanging up strings of lights along them. Some tents had been pitched on the far side of the garden, and a delicious smell wafted over to Cameron from the food piled up on the center table.

 

His whole body relaxed as he took in the scene around him; god, he'd missed this place. He started pushing himself up, but he didn't even manage to get on his feet before a red blur streaked across the lawn and tackled him in a hug, knocking him back on his ass.

 

“CAMMIE!” Megan squealed, squeezing the life out of him and shoving her face into his sternum. “I missed youuuuu!”

 

“You too, dude, but I kinda can't breathe,” he wheezed out, patting her head.

 

“AND DE!” she shrieked, ignoring him and leaping off to tackle Desoto. “Omigosh, did you get a haircut? You look so handsome!”

 

“Hi, Megan,” Desoto said indulgently. “Can I get up now?”

 

She helped them to their feet, chattering a mile a minute about how good it was to see them again. Following her, the other digimon came wandering over to say hi to Patamon and Tsunomon. There was a brief flash as Gabumon evolved back into his rookie form, and Cameron left him to catch up with his friends.

 

All the other Chosen Children seemed to have already arrived, and were clustered around the table with the food on it. Cameron headed over, happy to see them all in one place again.

 

“De! Cammie!” Andrew rushed forward to hug them- a little less acrobatically than his sister had, but no less enthusiastic. “It's so good to see you again. How have you been?”

 

“Good,” Cameron said, and restrained the urge to shove his face into Andrew's hair as he hugged him… wait, what? His hair smelled good. There was nothing weird about that, was there?

 

He was still a little dazed when Eleena approached them. “What's up, nerd patrol?” she asked, waving lazily.

 

“Your face,” Cameron said, patting Andrew absently on the back. He held his arms out to her. “What, no hug?”

 

“I will break your collarbone,” she said.

 

He laughed- and hurriedly dropped his hands, not willing to take the risk that she was serious. Then he moved forwards to talk to the old Chosen Children. “Hey guys, how are you all holding up?”

 

“Pretty good, I think,” Junko said, looking around at the others. “We spent all week working on the old base, undoing the… changes it had gone through.”

 

“Vega- er, Jaime, he called it the Temple when we got here,” Megan said.

 

Junko sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. “He would have.”

 

“You see, the whole thing with Vega,” Adam explained, “-that was like, his alter-ego, his superhero form. I think he came up with it after watching too much corny fighting anime.”

 

“Ohhhh,” Cameron said.

 

“Yeah, I'm honestly not surprised by the whole god-complex thing he had going on,” Junko said, shaking her head. “He was… sort of pretentious like that.”

 

A very uncomfortable laugh ran through the group. Junko looked strained.

 

Cameron decided to change the subject. “So!” he said, turning to Adam, and pointing to the blue checked dress he had on. “Still rocking the unisex look?”

 

“It's Adora,” Ridley and Aiko said at the same time, firmly, almost angrily.

 

He blinked. “Wh- oh, right. Leomon said you have two names.”

 

“Yup,” Adam said, smiling but looking a little nervous. “Here's a tip- when I'm wearing this bow, I'm Adora, and I'm a girl.” H- _she_ pointed at the large pink bow pinned into her curly hair. “No bow, I'm Adam, and I'm a boy.”

 

“Oh,” Cameron said. That was… certainly surprising, but he supposed it wasn't his place to judge. “Um, well, sorry if I insulted you. I can't promise I won't screw it up, though.”

 

Adora laughed. “Seriously? You can remember to call your digimon by a different name every time they evolve, but you can't remember my _two_ names?”

 

Well, when she put it _that_ way… He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “You got me there. Anyway, you look cute in that.”

 

She grinned up at him and put a hand on her cheek. “Aww, thanks.”

 

“Speaking of naaames,” Desoto said, bouncing up to them, his hands held up behind his back. “I have something I wanna announce!”

 

Megan gasped loudly. “Oh my gosh, have you picked out a boy name?!”

 

“Yep!” he said excitedly.

 

“Awesome!” Andrew said, reaching over to ruffle his hair.

 

“Nice,” Junko said, nodding in approval.

 

“Congrats, dude!” Cameron said, elbowing him affectionately. “Well come on, tell us what you chose!”

 

Desoto giggled bashfully. “I picked Angelo.”

 

“Ohh, that's nice!” Adam said. “Good choice.”

 

Megan stared at him for a moment. “...Wait a minute- is that a freaking _pun_?!”

 

It took Cameron a second to get it. “Oh- because of Patamon?!”

 

“Wellll, maybe a little.” Desoto- _Angelo_ now, Cameron supposed- said, grinning. “But also it's just a nice name. I wanted something simple that wouldn't stand out too much.”

 

“And now we can call you _Angel_ ,” Cameron said, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “Because you're our little _angel_.”

 

Angelo spluttered a little. “Oh come _on,_ that's so corny!” he said, embarrassed.

 

“No, no, it suits you!” Megan said, grinning. “Angel boy.”

 

Andrew rolled his eyes and huffed. “Guys, if he doesn't like the nickname-”

 

“No, no, I do!” Desoto said, blushing so hard that it showed even through his light brown skin. “I like it, it's cute.”

 

“Well, I'm gonna start eating,” Eleena said. “You can all small talk or whatever.”

 

At the mention of food, Agumon came rushing over, the other digimon racing behind him. “Yeah, let's eat!”

 

Cameron looked around, feeling happy and weirdly relieved. It made him feel a little guilty to word it like this, but being here… it kind of felt like coming home.

 

He reached over to tap Andrew on the shoulder. “Ok, while we're sitting down, I want you to finally tell us what happened to you when we all got separated.”

 

“Ughhhh, it's embarrassing,” Andrew said.

 

“Which is exactly why we want you to tell us,” Desoto said smugly.

 

Andrew rolled his eyes, but followed them as they all made their way over to the table. “Ok. Well, it all started when we woke up in that flower field...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry that this one was late as well, guys! I will do my upmost to get the final chapter uploaded on time on Sunday. :P


	30. Episode 30- Starting from here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TW- Innuendo and kids dealing with grief.

The meal was good- synthesized food was a little bland, in Andrew's opinion, but there was a lot of it, and it was nice to just sit and relax with the other Chosen Children and digimon.

 

They traded stories about their various adventures, Desoto ( _Angelo_ Andrew reminded himself, smiling slightly) and Adam got into a contest to see who could make the worst pun, and to the surprise of everyone, Eleena laid her head down on the table and laughed so hard she couldn’t breathe when she heard about how Cameron met Andrew and Megan for the first time.

 

To Andrew's delight, even Lopmon joined into the chatter. He'd been unusually perky all evening, and it gave Andrew hope that maybe he was starting to come out of the depression he'd been sunk in ever since… well.

 

It had been… difficult, these past few weeks. Andrew had tried so, so hard to give his digimon space to grieve, to not butt into his affairs, but it _hurt_ to see him suffer like that.

 

This was the first time he'd really seen him _smile_ since that night. He just prayed that whatever had changed, it would stay, even just a bit.

 

They demolished the feast that had been laid out in record time, and spent a while just sitting around, half dozing, too full to move or even talk.

 

“So…” Cameron stirred after a while, and Andrew opened his eyes blearily- he couldn’t remember falling asleep but apparently he’d dozed off for a bit. “What do we wanna do now? Play soccer?”

 

“Ugh, no, I’m too stuffed,” Junko said.

 

“Truth or dare!” Megan said immediately.

 

“Yeah!” Agumon chimed in.

 

“No.” Andrew said flatly, crossing his arms on the table in front of him.

 

“Aww, don’t be a wet blanket,” Megan said.

 

Andrew pointed an accusatory finger at her. “I’ve _seen_ how you play truth or dare, I’m allowed to be as wet of a blanket as I want.”

 

“I wanna play!” Aiko piped up.

 

“I’ve never played that before,” Eleena said, leaning forward. It was a little odd to see her getting involved in what they were doing, but Andrew figured it was a good thing

 

“What’s truth or dare?” Patamon asked.

 

“It’s a game,” Desoto said.

 

“It’s a foreplay game,” Andrew said at the same time.

 

“Andrew there’s an _eight year old_ sitting at the table,” Megan said sharply.

 

“Eight and a _half_ ,” Aiko insisted.

 

“Megan, you’re the _reason_ I feel the need to warn these people,” he shot back. “Do you remember our last birthday party? With the bottle rockets, and what happened to my underwear drawer?

 

Megan laughed, looking off into the middle distance for a moment. “Heh… yeah… good times. But I’m sure we could keep things PG 13 for this crowd.”

 

“It sounds like fun to me,” Adam said.

 

“Yeah, let’s do it!” Cameron agreed.

 

“I’m not sure about this…” Junko said.

 

“It'll be fun, don't worry!” Megan insisted.

 

Andrew rolled his eyes. He'd done his best to warn them, but the situation was out of his hands now.

 

He turned, and started asking, “Hey Lopmon, are you ok with-” then he blinked, looking at the empty chair that his digimon had previously occupied.

 

A little spike of panic rose up in him, but he repressed it; Lopmon probably hadn't gone too far. He needed to stop worrying about him so much, it wouldn't help anything.

 

Angelo caught him looking around, and seemed to understand what was going on. “Oh- I saw him slip off a little bit ago. He smiled at me before he left, so I figured he was probably ok...”

 

“Yeah, probably, but I think I might go looking for him anyway,” Andrew said, sliding out of his seat. “You guys start playing, ok? I'll join you later.”

 

Megan caught his arm before he could leave. “Hey- I don't wanna tell you what to do, but-”

 

Andrew smiled at her fondly, and put a reassuring hand on hers. “It's ok, I'm not gonna push him this time. I just- I have something I wanna give him.”

 

“Oh! Ok then.” Megan pulled back and gave him a thumbs up. “Good luck, bro.”

 

“Thanks,” he said, and headed off deeper into the garden.

 

~

 

Lopmon could heard the commotion from the main garden, smiling as someone shrieked with laughter and someone else yelled in outrage.

 

He was glad his friends were having fun- really, he was. He just… he needed a break right now.

 

He couldn't handle being surrounded by talking and laughter for too long. It _hurt_ , to see how happy they were, when he wasn't.

 

It had seemed like a good opportunity to forget about everything and just have fun with his friends for a couple days- and it _had_ been, at first. It had been… really nice to just lose himself for a while, not to exist in that painful, empty space that had all but swallowed him after… after Terriermon died.

 

But after just a few hours, he found the usual loneliness creeping up on again. It had weighed on him heavier and heavier as he watched his friends laugh and have fun, until he finally had to just escape.

 

He'd get his courage back up in the morning. He just- he needed a little break right now. So he'd retreated until he found this little garden bench where he could just sit and look at the flowers. They were really pretty, even at night.

 

Of course, just as he thought this, there was a rustling nearby, and who should walk out of the bushes but his dear human partner.

 

Andrew's shoulders sank in relief when he caught sight of him. “Oh, there you are,” he said, fishing a leaf out of his hair.

 

“Hi,” Lopmon said quietly.

 

“Do you...” Andrew put his hands behind his back. “Can I sit here? If you- if you wanna be alone right now, I understand. I just wanted to make sure you were ok.”

 

Looking up into his earnestly concerned face, Lopmon felt guilt pulling at him. It was pretty rotten of him to keep ignoring him for so long… it wasn't like he hated him, he'd just been- hurt, and scared, and completely unable to handle everything that was going on.

 

But it didn't look like Andrew was gonna start interrogating him again, so he scooted over. “Go ahead.”

 

Andrew smiled and sat down. The two of them stayed like that for a long time, not talking, just sort of… watching the flowers together.

 

It was actually kind of nice. Lopmon tried to control his breathing, feeling his body calm down. Maybe he'd needed this.

 

“...How are you?” Andrew asked.

 

He thought about it for a while. “I'm not ok,” he said, finally. “I'm better, but… not ok.”

 

The grief was more settled now- more of a constant, nagging ache than the sharp, lancing pain it had been in the beginning. He could almost ignore it sometimes, now.

 

He could never really forget it, though. It was always there in the back of his mind, reminding him of exactly how much he'd lost.

 

“Do you...” Andrew shifted awkwardly. “Do you wanna talk about it?”

 

Lopmon chewed thoughtfully at his bottom lip. Would it help? Would it ease any of the pain in his heart?

 

“I mean- you don't have to, really,” Andrew said, flustered. “I- I promised myself to give you space from now on, so I don't- I don't want to push, really.”

 

“I just-” Lopmon wrung his hands, looking up at the sky. The words came out of him in a rush, like he was admitting to an embarrassing secret. “I don't… he's gone, and I don't know how to handle that. I don't know if I'll _ever_ be able to handle that.”

 

It was this emptyness, right in the center of him. It hadn't really healed any since that day… what if he just had to feel like this for the rest of his life?

 

But then again, would NOT feeling like this mean forgetting his twin? He didn't want that. He didn't EVER want that.

 

He stayed like that for a while, wondering what Andrew would say in return. But to his surprise, instead of speaking, his partner nudged his cheek gently with his hand.

 

“I have something for you,” he said, his voice gentle, almost hesitant.

 

Lopmon turned, and Andrew opened his fist to reveal a small pendant and a glittering silver chain lying on his palm. He held his paws out, shocked, and Andrew tipped the necklace into them.

 

The pendant was a green stone shot through with veins of white, carved into a crystal shape and polished to a shine. Lopmon blinked down at it; it was beautiful.

 

“It reminded me of Terriermon,” Andrew said. “I thought… it might be nice for you to have something to remind you of him. Something to help keep him close.”

 

Lopmon stared up at him, wordless and a little awestruck.

 

Andrew gave him a little smile. “You don't have to have things figured out yet, you know? It's ok to grieve. I'm sorry I pushed you… I should have known it would take you some time. But when you're ready… I'm here, If you want to talk.”

 

Lopmon swallowed hard. … “ _Thank_ you,” he whispered, his throat suddenly tight. He blinked away the tears, and straightened out the necklace. “Thank you, seriously, this is so nice! Help me put it on?”

 

Andrew helped him fasten it, and he looked down at where it laid against his chest, brushing through his fur. It's weight was oddly comforting.

 

He looked up at his partner. “I'm sorry for how I treated you when-”

 

Andrew laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Don't worry about it. I'm sorry too.”

 

“...I love you,” he mumbled, tugging on his ear in embarrassment.

 

“Oh.” Andrew blinked at him, then smiled fondly. “I love you too.

 

He looked back down at the pendant. It really did make him feel a bit closer to his Twin. He imagined that somewhere, he could see Lopmon wearing this, and it made him happy, too.

 

“Thank you, really,” he said, again. “And I'll have to thank everyone else, I-I'm really touched that you would do this for me.”

 

“Hey, what are friends for?” Andrew smiled and bumped their shoulders together. “You're not alone, Lopmon. No matter what happens, please just remember that.”

 

“I will,” Lopmon said, and gently touched the pendant.

 

~

 

“Hey.”

 

Junko looked up from the dishes she was scrubbing to see Megan standing there, her hands clasped behind her back. “Hi. Do you need something”

 

“I'll help you out,” she said.

 

“Oh no, I've got it!” Junko insisted, but Megan slid into the spot next to her anyway.

 

“I can't sleep, so I need something to do,” she explained with a wry smile.

 

Junko thought about protesting more, but Megan had already settled in to work, and honestly, she appreciated the help. So she just shrugged and got back to scrubbing.

 

It was late, and everyone else had already gone to bed in the tents out in the garden. (Aiko had wanted to camp out, and everyone else had just kind of gone along with it. They spoiled that kid.)

 

Wormmon was curled up asleep on the counter; he'd started helping Junko out with the clean-up, but he'd been too tired to keep his eyes open. Junko smiled at him fondly.

 

“The meal went well,” she said off-handedly.

 

“Yeah!” Megan said. “Although I'm sorry about getting that jello in your hair.”

 

Junko rolled her eyes. “I was against truth or dare from the beginning,” she said sternly. “I don't think Ridley's ever getting that stain out of her sweater.”

 

“Oh you were definitely right,” Megan said. “I got the feeling it was a bad idea when I suggested it. I just yearn for chaos.”

 

They both laughed a little, but after that, the conversation sort of petered out, and the two of them worked side-by-side in silence. Megan kept opening and shutting her mouth like she wanted to say something, but she couldn't quite make herself voice it outloud.

 

Finally, Junko got tired of watching her struggle, and said, “You know, we never thanked you for letting us out of the barrier.”

 

“That was all De,” Megan said. “I mean- if I'd been there I _would_ have lobbied for it. And I'm like, ninety-nine percent sure the rest of us would have.”

 

“Well, thanks for that, anyway,” Junko said. “It was a risk all the way around.”

 

Megan's eyes got all wide. “What else were we _supposed_ to do?! We couldn't just leave you there, for heaven's sake!”

 

Junko's mouth quirked up in a smile. “You're good people, you know.”

 

“So are you,” Megan said. “Honestly- don't take this the wrong way, but when I heard there were other Chosen Children… I was worried that you might not appreciate us, um, stepping on your turf.”

 

“Well, _I_ was worried that you might betray us or something,” Junko said. “I'm glad both of our worries were unfounded.”

 

Megan nodded, chuckling softly as she dried off a plate. Then suddenly, she looked up with concerned frown, and said; “I'm really sorry about Jaime.”

 

“… Thanks,” Junko said quietly, a now-familiar pain lancing through her heart at the mention of his name.

 

“I just- I feel like we should have done _more_ ,” Megan said, wringing her hands. She looked frustrated, and maybe a little teary. “We should have saved him.”

 

Junko bit her lip. She set the dish down and crossed her arms, facing Megan. “Everything he did, all the choices that he made… that was all ultimately his fault. And he accepted the consequences for his actions. We all should too.”

 

Even as she said the words, she knew she didn't totally believe them. If she could have done anything, _anything_ to save Jaime… she would have.

 

From the look on her face, she hadn't quite convinced Megan either. Junko sighed, and pushed her hair back from her face. “Ok, I'll be honest with you, I'm still... kind of screwed up about it. Maybe a lot screwed up.”

 

Megan nodded. “I- I can't say that I _understand_ ,” she said, tapping at her arm. “But I know if I lost one of my teammates- my _friends…_ well, I can sympathize, at least.” She wrapped her arms around herself, looking pensively down at the floor.

 

“Well, thanks for that.” Junko sucked in a breath, and tried to get ahold of her feelings. “But honestly, I'm sick of mourning right now. There will be time for that later I just- I want to get everyone back on their feet again.”

 

“I get that,” Megan said.

 

“We need to talk to Leomon soon,” Junko said, leaning against the sink. “We need to see what kind of a state the Digital World is in now, see what we can help with. And we need to start training again- both of our teams, so we can stay on the top of our games.”

 

“Hey, I just had a thought- what about your families?” Megan asked. “Have you...”

 

“We're going to see them soon,” Junko, said. “Honestly- I'm kind of nervous about it. It's been ten years… I don't know what might have changed.”

 

“I'm sure they'll be happy to see you,” Megan said. “So wait- you're just living at the tem- the base right now, then? Are you doing ok? Do you have enough to eat and everything?”

 

Junko raised an eyebrow. “Megan- we're literally washing the dishes from the food that this base can replicate. I think we're gonna be fine.”

 

“Oh, right,” Megan said, blushing slightly.

 

“Thanks anyway,” Junko said, amused. “Really.”

 

Megan fidgeted a little more, then burst out, “Look- I doubt that there's much we can do to help you. But if there's anything you need help with- please, talk to me, ok? I can get the others to do anything you need. And even… like, if you just wanna talk?” she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. “Like, about Jaime. Or anything else. You can come to me.”

 

Junko smiled fondly. “You know, I never thought that there would be any other Chosen Children. But if there has to be more of us- I'm glad it's you guys. You really are good people.”

 

Megan broke out into the widest, sunniest grin that Junko had ever seen on another human being. “Awesome! Right back atcha, partner.”

 

Junko's heart felt a little lighter. Things- they were going to be difficult for a while, she didn't have any doubt about that. And she was going to be hurting for a long time, that was certain.

 

But she was still alive. And little by little, she thought they could start moving again. This wasn't a bad place to start back off.

 

Megan stepped forward and held her hand out. “You know, I think we'll make a fantastic team together.”

 

Junko shook her hand firmly. “Me too,” she said. “Maybe we'll even be friends..”

 

Megan laughed a little. “Maybe. Just maybe.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I. Cannot. BELIEVE. That i actually managed to finish this.
> 
> To anyone who has enjoyed reading this, as I posted it or after the fact, thank you! I have thoroughly enjoyed writing it, and have SEVERAL planned sequels. Up next should be a series of short stories, so look forward to that!


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